Doing Without
by lily anson
Summary: The begining of the series I'm attempting to write about the NCIS team minus Gibbs. Yes, charactor death, so be forewarned and read or don't read accordingly. Warnings: Adult Situations, Character Death - Main Character, Dark Themes, Drama, Family, Hurt/Comfort, Language, Violence
1. Chapter 1

It all started with a cup of coffee. Looking back McGee couldn't help feeling like he should have know something bad was fixing to happen. He wasn't sure how, but there was a strangeness about the day from the time he woke up. It wasn't anything he could specifically put a finger on. Getting up to get ready for work a sense of forboding began filling the air. He shook off the odd feelings and got ready to begin his day.

Crime seemed to come to a stand still lately so they were keeping themselves occupied with cold cases. While the slow crime rate should have been reassuring, but the lack of activity was taking it's toll on everyone. Gibbs was more snappish than normal, Ziva was more withdrawn and Tony was... Well, Tony was even more Tony-ish than normal. McGee frowned at that thought. Something had to give soon before someone ended up killing someone. He prepared to leave the elevator and stopped short when he came face to face with Gibbs.

"McGee." Gibbs nodded once in acknowledgement.

"Gibbs." McGee replied.

"Going for coffee. Want to come?" asked Gibbs.

"Sure." answered McGee.

The odd trepidation returned and McGee shoved it aside. There's no logical reason to believe anything bad was about to occur. The soft sound the elevator doors made closing did little to alleviate the odd feelings. McGee exited the elevator but when Gibbs exited the building McGee stopped. Internal warning alarms began going off the charts for no reason McGee could fathom.

"McGee?"

McGee looked up and met Gibbs' eyes. Gibbs didn't look like he had noticed anything out of the ordinary. If something was wrong Gibbs would know, McGee was sure about that. McGee mentally head slapped himself and forced his feet to move. Though the walk to the coffee shop passed without incident McGee's unease grew. Stupid, McGee thought to himself. If something was wrong Gibbs would know, wouldn't he?

Gibbs pulled the door open and turned towards McGee as they entered. Gibbs' mouth opened as if to speak but the next thing McGee heard was the gunshot. McGee instinctively pulled his own gun but the man had grabbed a hostage leaving McGee with no clear shot. The gunman exited the building and McGee started to chase after him. He turned to Gibbs for some reason he would never remember later. There was a brief moment of confusion before McGee reallized Gibbs had been shot. Without a thought he dropped to check on Gibbs.

"Why are you... still here? Go... Get that bastard..."

Without thinking McGee automatically turned to obey his boss' order. He had a few second thoughts about leaving Gibbs, but he'd already began to pursue the gunman. Besides Gibbs would be fine. He had to be. If Gibbs died... McGee refused to finish that thought. There was no way Gibbs was going to die, he was all but indestructable. With that last thought McGee turned his full attention back to the chase.

The gunman had apparently released his hostage shortly after exiting and was waving his gun at anyone in his way. Chaos began to set in as people began yelling. They scattered in all directions. McGee coming up from behind the already spooked civilians with his own gun drawn just made the confusion worse. Another gunshot rang out and McGee tried to get a shot at the man that shot Gibbs. Terrified pedestrians attempting to flee kept running between him and his target.

"Dammit!"

****back at NCIS****

"They have been gone a long time."

"You really that anxious to deal with an annoyed Gibbs, Ziva?"

Ziva sighed and watched Tony. He was playing another one of those stupid games on his phone with his feet propped on his desk. She shook her head. With all the times Tony's gotten yelled at for goofing off, you think he would know better. She tried to concentrate on the case she was working on, but her mind kept wandering. Gibbs and McGee had been gone a long time. Much longer than it should have taken to get coffee.

"Where's Gibbs?"

Tony and Ziva looked up at the same time. Vance stood a short distance off with his arms folded across his chest. His face was fixed with a look of extreme irritation. Tony immediately dropped his feet off the desk. Ziva quietly shook her head as she watched Tony palm his phone and begin to answer the director.

"Uh, he and McGee went for coffee last I heard."

"Coffee?" Vance did not look happy. "Doesn't he have some rule about not being unreachable?"

"Yes, rule number three. I can call him if you like." Ziva offered.

"I've been calling him and he's not answering. You two go find him, you've got a case."

Vance turned and left without another word. Tony and Ziva exchanged looks, but neither said anything. As soon as Vance left they silently gathered their jackets and made their way to the elevator. They were almost at the exit before Ziva finally spoke up.

"Tony, something is not right."

"Don't go there Ziva."

It was then that she reallized the tension that filled Tony. She frowned at him.

"You are worried too." she stated.

"Don't go there Ziva."

"Tony-"

"They just went to get coffee Ziva, there's nothing wrong."

"Then why would he not answer his phone?"

"Maybe he just didn't want to talk to Vance. Drop it Ziva, nothing's wrong."

"Then why are you almost running?"

Tony slowed his pace but didn't respond to her.

****A short time later****

There is nothing wrong, he told himself over and over again. Truthfully he had already reallized Gibbs and McGee were overdue. He'd been pretending to play games on his phone as a subterfuge to keep an eye on how long they'd been gone. He had to admit he was also toying with the idea of calling Gibbs. It had already been long enough that Tony knew he should have already called Gibbs.

He stubbornly refused to answer Ziva. He didn't want to say anything out loud. It was as if putting it into words might some how make it real. As long as no one said anything, then nothing bad could have happened. Tony knew it was stupid but the alternative was worse. If anything had happened to Gibbs and McGee...

Rounding the last corner the was like walking straight into the nightmare he'd been trying to avoid. Two cruisers were parked near the coffee shop blocking trafic, LEO's were questioning civilians, and red and blue lights flashed across the whole scene. Tony stopped walking scanning the scene for anything that might tell him what happened. Ziva placed her hand on his arm.

"Tony." she said quietly.

"No." He shrugged her hand off. "No, no, no."

Tony started forward again. He'd only gone a few steps before he was running. As he closed the distance a LEO stepped in front of him. Tony dodged him but the man grabbed Tony's arm slowing him down. The struggle was brief but by the time Tony had freed himself two others arrived to bar his path.

"NCIS!" he shouted at them digging frantically for his badge.

"Agents David and DiNozzo, NCIS." Ziva reiterated flashing her badge.

The LEO's exchanged looks that let DiNozzo know just how bad the situation was. Tony turned and looked at Ziva. He tried to talk to her but for some reason his voice wouldn't work. She laid her hand on his arm again and he quit trying to speak. For a while the two of them just stood there. The officer cleared his throat. Tony couldn't bring himself to meet the man's eyes.

"What happened?" Ziva asked quietly.

"A man came in and robbed the place. Your partners showed up at the wrong time."

"Both?" Tony whispered. He couldn't believe one man bested both of them.

"Oh. No, Agent McGee is fine. Apparently he chased the suspect for a while before the suspect got away. We should probably go see him. We told him he could call after he was done giving a formal statement. He's probably almost finished."

"What hospital is Gibbs in" Tony asked, still unable to raise his voice above a whisper.

The officer shifted uncomforably. "I'm sorry. He didn't make it."

Tony's voice failed him again. Gibbs was dead? He couldn't be.

"Call Ducky." Tony turned to Ziva as he spoke. "Ducky is the only doctor Gibbs will let treat him. He needs Ducky."

"Shh Tony." Ziva pulled Tony closer and wrapped her arms around him.

He wanted to tell her the cop was wrong. He wanted to tell her that they had to get Ducky to fix Gibbs. Didn't want to accept that Gibbs was gone. He tried to protest again but he broke down instead. He wrapped his arms around Ziva and held on to her as tightly as he could. He couldn't loose her too.

"Tony. We need to find McGee." Ziva said making no attempt to move.

He raised his head and met her eyes before giving her a brief nod. They walked silently into the coffee shop. McGee was standing by the far wall with his back to them. An officer was standing with him talking to him. Almost as if he sensed the arrival of his partners he turned in their direction. He said something to the officer who nodded back before walking over and joining them.

"Come on, I can't stand to be here any longer. Let's go back."


	2. Chapter 2

In stark contrast from the walk to the coffee shop, the walk back seemed to take no time at all. No one spoke, each lost in their own thoughts. The silence remained as they rode the elevator back up. McGee couldn't help but blame himself for Gibbs dying. Intellectually he knew it wasn't his fault, but he felt he shouldn't have left Gibbs. He should have stayed and done what he could. At the very least he should have stayed so his boss wouldn't have had to die alone.

Gibbs' last words played through his mind. 'Go... Get that bastard...' He couldn't do anything to bring Gibbs back. Gibbs was gone, but there was still something he _could_ do. He could honor Gibbs' last order and get the bastard. McGee reached out and hit the emergency button on the elevator bringing it to a halt. He turned and spoke to Tony and Ziva.

"Gibbs' last words were to get the bastard. I'm going to bring him down no matter what. You don't have to help me but neither of you better get in my way either." McGee stared at his teammates challenging them to oppose him. Daring them to tell him he couldn't do this. Technically they'd be right since he shouldn't be allowed to investigate this case having been a part of what happened. Ziva spoke first.

"We will talk about this later." She reached for the emergency button but McGee stopped her.

"No, we will talk about this now. I want to know if I can count on support from my partners or not. I want to know if I can count on back up if I need it or if I need to plan on handling everything myself. I'm not going back in there without knowing where you two stand on this."

"Vance will never let us handle this case McGee." Ziva said with a small frown.

"I'm with you Tim." DiNozzo said quietly.

Ziva shook her head slowly. "I never said I wasn't with you. I said Vance won't let us handle this case. Gibbs was important to all of us McGee. His killer will pay for what he has done. I am with you, however, Vance will not like our involvement on this case."

"Damn Vance and damn anyone else that gets in the way! Gibbs' last order to me was to get the bastard and that's what I'm going to do."

"I am with you McGee. As I have said, Gibbs meant a lot to all of us. Finding his killer and making sure he is... adequately... punished, is the least we can do for him."

Tim stared at Ziva for a moment longer and then looked back to DiNozzo. DiNozzo gave a slight nod of agreement. Satisfied with their responses Tim finally reached out and pushed the emergency button again. The elevator sprang back to life and resumed it's assent. There was much to be done and a short time to do it in. The more time they wasted the longer Gibbs' killer was allowed to roam free. The doors opened and they exited the elevator.

"I'll tell Vance about what happened. Someone needs to tell Ducky and Abby." Tim looked at his partners waiting for their responses.

"I'll tell Abby." replied Tony softly.

"I will tell Ducky." Ziva said.

Tim nodded and the three of them set off towards their respective destinations.

****McGee****

McGee entered Vance's office and stood in front of the director's desk.

"About time one of you showed up. Your team's got a case. By the way getting coffee is not an acceptable excuse for being late. Where's Gibbs?" Vance scowled at McGee.

"Is dying an acceptable excuse." McGee said narrowing his eyes at the director.

"What exactly are you getting at McGee." Vance stared at McGee dubiosily.

"What I'm getting at is Gibbs is dead. Is that an acceptable reason for being late?"

"What do you mean dead?" Vance stood and leaned forward placing both hands on his desk.

"Dead. As in gone, deceased, not among the living. Dead. What part of dead aren't you getting director?" McGee glared at Vance as he spoke.

****later****

By the time McGee arrived back in the squadroom ZIva had already returned. Tony was still missing, presumably still with Abby. Tim sighed and debated about checking on the two of them. He reallized Abby would probably ask for all the details and would probably be inconsolable for a long time. He understood how she felt but he didn't really have time for that right now. He had a killer to catch.

"Ducky knows?" he asked Ziva.

"Ducky knows." she replied not looking at him directly.

****Tony/Abby****

Tony held Abby as she continued sobbing on his shoulder. He wanted to join her but he couldn't. If he let his feelings out he wasn't sure he could put them back any time soon. Instead he let Abby cry for the both of them. He knew Tim and Abby were close, but he had known her longer. He had wanted to be the one to tell her because he knew what she'd need after she found out. He wanted to be the one to be there for her. To help her through this and to share in her sadness.

"Shh... It'll be ok, Abbs."

She punched his arm without lifting her head off his shoulder. "He's dead Tony. It's never going to be alright. He's gone."

The rest of what she was saying became unintelligible. Tony continued to hold her and rub her back softly. He kept whispering reassurances. He knew she wasn't listening to what he was saying. He just wanted to reassure her she wasn't alone in this. He couldn't grieve for Gibbs yet, but he could hold Abby while she grieved for them both. He could take care of Abby. When they caught the bastard then Tony would let himself grieve. Until then he had to stay focused.

****Back upstairs****

Ziva stared at the screen memorizing the details of the the man that had murdered Gibbs. McGee stood quietly next to her. McGee had insisted that the owner of the shop give him the surveillance tapes. She was definately going to find this man and make sure he paid for his crimes. She promised herself that this man would fully understand how much pain his actions had brought others before she was done with him. Vance walked in and stood in front of them.

"You three are on leave as of now. Two weeks minimum. I'll reassess the time after two weeks and a psych eval for you all. I don't want to see any of you near this case."

"You can't stop us from investigating this. Gibbs-"

"Was close you you all. And you were present when he was killed, McGee, making you a witness. I can't allow this team to investigate this. I don't want to _see_ any of you near this case. I'm handing this to another team and you three are all on leave. If I _see_ any of you near this case we're going to have a problem. Are we clear?"

McGee opened his mouth to respond but Ziva stopped him.

"We are clear."

"Good."

McGee watched Vance leave and then rounded on Ziva.

"What the hell Ziva? You 're letting him throw us off this case without a fight?"

"No McGee. I just understood exactly what he was saying."

"Yeah me too. He doesn't want us investigating this and you let him throw us off this case without a fight."

"He said he did not want to see us near this case McGee. I do not believe he thinks we will just let it go. Just that he does not wish to know if we have or have not."

McGee stared at her in shock.

****Vance****

Vance walked back to his office still questioning his decision. He should have completely forbidden their involvement. He should take steps to make sure they would leave this to the other team. He knew better, though. There was no way they would stand down on this. They would investigate with or without his permission. He just had to cover his own ass. Sometimes it really sucks to be the boss.


	3. Chapter 3

A soft noise near the door to the lab caught Tony's attention. Turning his head towards the door he saw Ziva in the doorway. She appeared to be carefully inspecting either the ground or her shoes and Tony was greatful. He turned his attention back to Abby and tried to get her attention.

"Abby. We have to focus now. I need you to be strong long enough for you to help us catch this guy. Can you do that for me? Please Abbs."

Abby pulled her head up off Tony's shoulder and looked at him eye to eye for moment. She raised her hand and gently brushed the tips of her fingers across his temple a few times. She gave Tony another tight hug before she nodded at him. He smiled back at her and helped her to her feet. With a final glance at

Abby he turned to Ziva.

"What's up?" he asked Ziva.

"We are officially now off the case."

Tony swore. "Unofficially?" he growled.

"Unofficial things are better discussed in unofficial places, Tony." Ziva stated quietly.

Tony nodded at her. He understood what she was saying. He figured Vance would have to pull them off this. He knew Tim meant what he said in the elevator.  
Tony was just as serious when he told Tim that he was with him. He figured Ziva would be with them, but wasn't completely positive at the time.

"Where and when?"

"McGee's house. Seven p.m. He wanted to make it earlier but I have a few things I need to do. By the way, Tony, we have at least two weeks leave before we can think about coming back to work."

Tony just nodded.

****Abby's Lab****

"I'm coming too."

Tony and Ziva turned to Abby as soon as the words were out of her mouth. Ziva actually seemed to be considdering the idea. She knew Tony was against the idea as soon as she saw his expression. She wouldn't let Tony keep her out of anything that had to do with catching the man that killed Gibbs. Gibbs meant just as much to her as she knew he had meant to Tony.

"Im helping and that's final. You're not the only one that lost someone Tony."

"I know Abbs, it's just that we need you to help with the evidence. If you invovement becomes questionable the evidence may get dismissed. Then Gibbs' killer wouldn't get convicted Abby."

"You and I both know this isn't a case that's going to end up in court Tony. Gibbs was family, and no one messes with family."

"Okay okay. But at the very least we need to make sure it doesn't look like you're involved with anything we're doing. That way there's no reason for Vance to pull you off the case too. We got lucky he hasn't so far, let's not push it. So far you're the only person we have with access to whatever the other team finds out since we've been placed on leave."

Abby smiled and quickly wrapped Tony in a long hug. After she let him go she turned and gave Ziva a hug as well.

****Vance****

Under the pretense of getting some air Vance slipped out of the building. He had a call to make.

"No, it's not a joke. He really was shot in robbery. He's really gone. I just thought you should know." Vance sighed and listened to the man on the other side of the phone cursing.

"Do we have his killer in custody yet?"

Fornell's voice was quiet but it did little to mask the rage in the other man's voice.

"Not yet. Just so you know I had to pull his team off this. I can't let them investigate this. I don't want to _hear_ about you doing anything to help them disobey my orders."

"I promise you that you won't hear anything of the kind Director Vance. I hope you gave them some time to deal with their grief."

"I gave them two weeks leave effective immediately. They might appreciate a visit from a _friend_ to _help_ them with their... _grief_."

"They might indeed. As I said thank you for calling me Director."

Vance listened to the dial tone for a few seconds before closing his cell. He told himself he called Fornell because he and Gibbs were friends. He told himself that Fornell would want to know about what happened if only to attend the funeral.

****Ducky****

Autopsy finished, Ducky carefully closed the drawer. He couldn't stand to look at Jethro's body any longer. Ziva had been direct and to the point when she had come down earlier. Even with her warning there hadn't been much time for him to absorb the fact that Jethro was really dead before the body was brought in. Jimmy had offered to assist but Ducky refused to let anyone else be there while he did what needed to be done. Jimmy looked relieved, but Ducky didn't blame him.

With his part done he silently wished the rest of them luck in finding the man responsible. He knew they weren't allowed to investigate, but he also knew them. There was no way any of them would stop until they had the killer. He didn't want to think about what would happen to him after the team caught him. He locked the doors to autopsy and walked over to his desk. Pulling out his bottle of scotch he sat down to reminisce about his old friend.

****Abby/Jimmy****

Abby was just leaving autopsy with the bullet Ducky had pulled from Gibbs when Palmer stopped her.

"I want in."

"In on what Jimmy?"

"Don't give me that. I'm not going to accept that everyone's just going to back off and be good little boys and girls. I know you all better than that."

Abby smiled and grabbed Palmer's hands, slipping him the note with the time everyone was meeting at Tim's and the address written on it.

"You know they can't investigate this Jimmy. We'll have to leave this to the other team and hope they catch the man."

She winked at Palmer and then left without another word.

****Ziva****

"We are 'officially' not allowed to be investigating this."

"I'm used to working unofficially Agent David."

"I thought you might be."

Ziva gave a malicious grin and Kort had a feeling that it would be the same type of grin a lion might give someone just before it pounced. He knew she wasn't after him but he still felt a chill down his spine. The man who had killed Gibbs was had no idea about the trouble he'd just brought down on himself.

"Til seven then." He nodded at her and they left in opposite directions.


	4. Chapter 4

Kort watched and rewatched the tape Agend David had provided him with. At first he watched the moment of the robbery stopping the tape the moment the gunman left the field of view. He thought about it for minute. Who robs a coffee shop? Kort scowled at the tape. He rewound it and began watching from the moment the man entered the shop.

****Later on****

By the time Kort had tracked down the man that entered with the gunman that shot Gibbs he was in a foul mood. After knocking the man unconscious he took him to a safe house on the outskirts of the city. Kort cuffed the man to a pipe.

"You will tell me everything you know."

"If I don't?" The younger man smirked.

"I don't believe I gave you that option." Kort smiled broadly at the man.

****A little later****

Kort considdered applying more persuasive techniques, but he honestly believed the man had told him everything he knew. Damn. He moved so he was no longer standing on the man's one free hand and put his gun away. Kort checked his watch. He still had some time. He could check out the man's claims. Normally he'd blow off the meeting to follow his lead but this wasn't a normal situation. This was personal.

Gibbs was one of the few people Kort trusted to watch his back or even keep his word. Growing up Kort hadn't been able to trust many people and it wasn't much different now. Even if it wasn't the conventional friendship it had worked for them. He decided it was probably best to head back to the agency and see what information he could dig up. Kort put a call into one of the few people left he could trust.

****Tim POV****

Tim felt like he was going crazy waiting for the others to arrive. He needed to be doing something productive. He could probably hack into the facial recognition software and not leave any signs he'd been there. He thought about it twice. Theoretically if there had been a match on it, Abby would text him. He should wait but he had hit the limits of his patience. He swore and stalked over to his computer.

****Ziva POV****

Ziva slammed her cell phone shut and put it back in her pocket. Her contacts wished for at least twenty four hours before she contacted again. She sighed. Maybe calling every hour hadn't helped any, but damn it, she had to do something. Retracing the path the killer had taken didn't reveal anything either. Ziva let out a string of curses in Hebrew. Ziva turned around to retrace the steps back to the coffee shop.

****Later at Tim's****

It was six-fifty when he heard the first knock. Tim walked to the door and opened it. Ziva brushed past him and inspected his living room.

"We will need more chairs."

"Why would we need more chairs?"

"Where else would everyone sit?"

Before McGee could respond there was another knock at the door. He left her cryptic remark unanswered and went to see who else had arrived. Opening the door Tony and Abby pushed past McGee into the apartment. He frowned at Abby's presence, though in retrospect he should have reallized she'd have shown up too. Before he could comment on it there was another knock. Opening the door McGee stared in shock as Trent Kort pushed past him.

"What the-"

"McGee." Kort nodded.

"What the hell is he doing here?" Tony glared at Kort.

"Different eyes for different perspectives, Tony. Also he is not banned from investigating this. We are." Ziva raised an eyebrow at Tony.

McGee started to interject but was cut off by another knock at the door. He opened the door and Palmer nodded to him before walking in. McGee stood there a few moments in stunned silence. Just before he closed the door a hand stopped it from shutting. Fornell walked in and shut the door behind himself. Fornell eye'd Kort briefly before giving him a slight nod.

"Kort." Fornell said blandly.

"Fornell." Kort replied equally bland.

McGee stared at the other six people in his living room. Ziva had explained Kort, he reallized he should have expected Abby, but that still left Fornell and Jimmy unaccounted for. He eye'd them both wondering if he should even ask. McGee just shook his head. He honestly didn't want to know how they'd known. He didn't care what happened or who knew so long as they caught the bastard that killed Gibbs.

"Are we expecting anyone else?" he asked the people in his living room. A few of them looked at the others around them but no one spoke. He sighed and locked the door. He gave the people in his living room one last look before begining.

"So what do we know?"

"Police records matched the prints to a Michael Robinson. Convicted of three robberies in Maryland, one in Rhode Island. Also charged with murder in Maryland once but not convicted."

Tony handed a folder containing the basic information on Robinson to McGee.

"No known information on him after about three years ago." Tony finished.

"The bullet taken from... Gibbs... matches a Smith and Wesson fourty-four. The other team also found one in the ceiling of the coffee shop and one at the entrance to the alley you chased him down." Abby stared at the ground as she finished speaking.

"I have someone running Real Time Facial Tracking software. The second he shows his face on any camera we'll be able to locate him. Until he does there's not much more we can do." Fornell slumped back in the chair.

"Our Mr. Robinson entered the coffee shop with a Mr. Alan Kaplan. Kaplan got a cup of coffee, exchanged a few words with Robinson and left immediately after. Kaplan claims he and Robinson were hired by a person who never gave them a name. Kaplan did provide a description of him." Kort tossed two folders onto McGee's coffee table. One labeled Robinson and one labeled Kaplan.

"The description of the mystery employer is in Kaplan's folder, as well as his criminal history. The mystery employer paid them to hit the coffee shop and a conveince store nearby one hour apart from each other. Here's the surveillance tapes from the conveince store." Kort dropped the tapes on top of the files he produced earlier. "The address they were supposed to meet their employer at so they could be paid is also in Kaplan's file. I've got Kaplan at a safe house with someone watching over him at the moment."

"You were able to detain the partner to the man that killed Gibbs and we're just now finding out about this!"

Ziva stalked over to where Kort was standing.

"What good would it have done? I got all the information he had."

"Let me talk to him. We will see if he has told you everything."

"I assure you he's told me everything he knows. It would be a waste of time."

"If you think-"

"Both of you, stop. Now!"

Tim pushed himself off the wall he'd been leaning against.

"Argueing amongst ourselves isn't going to help us. We're all here for the same reason. Everyone needs learn to work together or get the fuck out."

Tim looked around the room at the others. When he was satisfied he had their attention he continued.

"Abby, you keep us appraised of what the other team finds. Palmer, you help Abby keep tabs on them in case she can't for some reason. Fornell, you set up serveillence for when Robinson goes to recieve payment. Tony, Kort, you two find out everything you can about the mystery employer. Ziva, you go requestion  
Kaplan. Take Palmer with you."

"Kaplan doesn't need to be requestioned. I told you I got all the information out of him."

"Rules are rules, Kort. 'Always double check', and Rule Eight, 'never take anything for granted'. Everyone understand what they're doing?"

One by one the other people in the apartment nodded.

"If you find Robinson before the meeting tail him. Don't take Robinson down before the meeting. He may have pulled the trigger but but I want the bastard that hired him too. And Ziva, remember, we need Kaplan alive."

****Fornell****

As soon as Fornell closed his car door he pulled his phone out. He needed to get his people started on what needed to be done. Sooner or later he was going to have to tell his boss something. He was pretty sure his boss wouldn't have a problem with this op, but he couldn't be a hundred percent. He was also going to have to find a way to explain the evidence they had without involving the others.

****Back at Tim's****

After Fornell left Ziva turned to Kort.

"Where are you holding Kaplan?"

"I can give you directions, but I'm going to have to make a call. Like I said, I left someone watching him. The guy I left won't be too happy if someone else shows up unannounced."

"Give me the directions. You can make your call while I'm on my way."

Kort nodded and began writting the instructions down. When he was finished he handed them to Ziva and pulled his phone out. He called the person he had gaurding Kaplan to give him the heads up. Ziva took the directions and left immediately, leaving Palmer to follower her or not. Kort watched Palmer scramble after Ziva and smiled. He figured Travis and Ziva would either love each other or kill each other. When he was done with the call he turned to Tony and shrugged.

"Guess it's you and me, now."

"Yea, whatever," muttered Tony before leaving the apartment.

Kort grinned and followed Tony out.

Tim shook his head and shut the door behind them. When he turned around he saw Abby still sitting on his couch. Abby was curled up with her legs underneath her. She was leaning against the arm of the couch and had her head on her knees. Tim ran a hand through his hair and sighed. Walking over to the couch he sat down next to Abby. As soon as he put his arm around her she snuggled into him.

"Is he really gone Timmy?"

"Yeah Abbs. He's really gone."

"Tell me we'll get him, Timmy."

"We'll get him Abbs."


	5. Chapter 5

Fornell decided to watch Robinson's house until they got confirmation he was elsewhere. It was as good of a place as any to wait and until they had more information there wasn't much else to do. Sometime around eight-thirty Fornell's cell rang. Checking the caller ID confirmed it was a member of the team he'd set to watch for Robinson.

"Fornell," he answered.

"Suspect spotted. Convience store near Trinity and Fosters Avenue. Sending GPS coords ASAP.

"Good work." Fornell hung up and started towards the location.

****Ziva****

Travis sat in a metal folding chair watching Agent David. He resisted the urge to smile. Agent David was good at her work. Kaplan hadn't revealed anything new but Travis didn't expect him to. If Kort hadn't gotten the information out of Kaplan it was because Kaplan didn't have it. Travis and Kort had known each other since they were young. They'd shared a lot throughout the years. Travis' mouth flattened thinking back to the past.

Agent David backed away briefly and the man who had arrived with her walked over to Kaplan. Travis watched the Assistant ME check Kaplan before moving over to talk with the Agent. Whatever his prognosis was, it didn't appear to sit well with the woman. Travis stretched his legs out and crossed them at the ankles. He went through the check-list of things that needed to done to wipe evidence of what this place had been used for.

****Tony/Kort****

"Oh come on DiNozzo. It doesn't take both of us to talk to your buddies. Our time would be better spent if we split up."

"No way Kort, I'm not letting you run off and do God know's what."

"And just what exactly is it you think I'm going to do?"

"I don't know but if I'm stuck with you then you're not leaving my sight."

"Let's just get this over with, DiNozzo.

"Fine with me."

Tony exited the car and slammed the door shut. He waited for Kort to get out and together they walked towards the station. Kort started whistling. They walked a few more steps before Tony stopped and glared at him. Kort stopped whistling and grinned. Tony shook his head and marched into the station. Kort inspected the lobby as Tony went to talk to the woman behind the desk. As soon as Tony was too involved to pay adequate attention Kort turned and slipped out of the station.

Rounding another corner Kort stopped and pulled out his phone. Between the different police stations Tony had to visit, and checking with people Kort usually persuaded information out of, they'd never get everything done without splitting up. After aquiring a ride he hung up and made another call to Travis. Kort smiled as he listened to Travis discuss Ziva's interrogation techniques. He was glad Travis had taken a liking to Ziva.

****Tim****

Tim paused the tape and rubbed his eyes. It was getting late. If he didn't get some sleep soon he might miss something important. He just hated the thought of Gibbs' killer still running free. He stood and paced the bedroom. He reallized he needed to talk to Ducky to see when the funeral would be held and added that to a mental list of things to do. Cursing he picked up Robinson's file and laid down to read it before he got some sleep.

****Later at Tim's****

A buzzing noise woke Tim up sometime around six fourty-five. He groaned and pulled the pillow over his head. The pillow did little to block the noise. Slowly he was becoming more and more conscious. At some point he reallized the buzzing was his cell telling him he had a text. His brain clicked on at that thought. He sat up and grabbed the cell. Flipping it open he reallized the text had come in a little more than an hour ago from Fornell.

The text was short and succinct. 'M.R. found. Tailed to home. Under watch.' Tim blinked twice. They found him? Dialling Fornell's number he started picking out clothes to change into. Robinson was set to meet with the mystery man in a little more than two hours. If all went well, this nightmare would be over soon.

"Fornell," answered the FBI agent.

"You found him?"

"I texted you that we did, didn't I?"

Tim could hear the smirk in the FBI agent's voice.

"Location?"

"You'd do better to hook up with my boys at the meeting location. Too many people sitting around a residential area might start looking suspicious."

"Dammit Fornell."

"You should get on site before the meeting so you can familiarize yourself with the area. I promise you I'm not going to lose him."

"Fine, but I take him down Fornell. The last thing Gibbs ever said to me was get the bastard. If you or your boys steal this out from under me or my team you're not going to like the results."

"You and yours make the collar but this bust belongs to all of us McGee. I'm not looking to take credit for the bust, but we're all in on this. Much as I hate to say it even Kort should get some recognition. If only just from the few of us in the know."

"Fine."

"Good."

With that Fornell hung up and the phone went dead. McGee closed his cell and began to get dressed. Before walking out the door McGee texted Ducky to see when the funeral would take place. If he had more time he would have called him. He hated to admit it but he missed the older man and his stories.

****Ziva****

Ziva had dropped Palmer back at his house after she'd finished with Kaplan. She had debated going back but decided against it. As much as she wanted to slowly torture the man until he wished he was dead, she couldn't justify it. She had probably gone a little farther than she needed too last night when questioning the man, but she couldn't help it at the time. At least the man was still alive and didn't have permanent damage. When morning came she showered, dressed and headed out to meet with the surveillance team.

****Tony****

As soon as the beeps started Tony's eyes flew open. He was sitting up and looking around before he was even fully awake. Groaning he pulled his cell out of the passenger seat and turned the alarm off. After losing Kort he'd finished checking with the police departments he knew people on, and had gone to check out Robinson's house. Easing closer to the residence he noted Fornell's car. If the FBI agent was sitting outside the residence and hadn't messaged anyone, it was a safe bet Robinson wasn't home.

Tony drove close to the meeting location and parked in an area where he wasn't likely to be noticed. He figured if he was present before the targets showed he would be less likely to draw attention to himself. It would also give him a chance to get the lay of the land before the targets got there. Tony yawned and pocketed his cell. Thinking about busting this creep brought back the fact that they were only here because Gibbs was dead. Not now, Tony thought to himself. When this is over, then we grieve. Until then stay focused DiNozzo.

****Kort****

At fifteen 'til nine Kort walked up to a news stand and bought a paper. He tucked the paper under his arm that wasn't holding his coffee. Walking towards the location he whistled to himself. He continued whistling as he sat at the bus stop and pulled out the newspaper. He hadn't gotten much last night after giving DiNozzo the slip but he didn't like the information he did get. At least he got a vague description of mystery man. He had a bad feeling this was only the begining of something big and it wasn't going to end well.

Sitting at the bus stop Kort carefully watched the people on the street over the edge of his newspaper. Occasionally he would move the paper out of his field of vison under the pretense of getting a drink of his coffee. About five til nine Kort noted a person with similar features to vague description he'd managed to dig up. Suspect One, as Kort dubbed him, was talking with another person at the far edge of the of their perimeter. He watched Suspect One blend into the crowd and his friend enter the perimeter.

****Tim****

Tim parked his car on the curb close to the location where the suspects were supposed to meet. He got out and opened up a map. He scanned the area trying to see if he could find any of the others. He noted Kort at the bus stop, and Ziva down the the street a little way. Ziva appeared to be waiting for a ride and looked annoyed that it had not shown yet. He didn't see Tony but he knew the other man was here somewhere.

He spotted Robinson walking in their direction. For some reason the man seemed nervous and kept glancing behind. Tim, still looking directly at the map shifted his eyes behind Robinson and inspected the other people. It didn't take long before he spied the agent that was following Robinson. The man obviously had no clue how to tail a suspect. Damn, Tim thought. He had to do something before Robinson bolted.

Tim put the map in his car and turned to intercept the agent. Before he could take a step a man with a red cap and denim jacket tripped over his own feet and fell into the agent. The man and the agent fell against the wall of the nearest building. Tim almost took off to aid the agent in case the other man was with the suspects. He'd taken one step before he reallized the stranger in the red cap was Tony.

****Ziva****

Ziva watched the agent tailing their suspect and almost cursed. She didn't think the suspect _knew_ he was being tailed for a fact, but he was definately nervous. She started racking her mind for ways to fix the situation when she saw a man stumble into the agent. Ziva smoothly shifted in case she had to pull her weapon before she reallized the new arrival was Tony. Relieved she shifted her posture back and checked her watch again.

****Fornell****

Fornell sat in the van watching the suspect growing more and more nervous and wanted to curse Sims. He started to yell at his agent through the mic, but as soon as he opened his mouth a man fell into his agent, bouncing them both off a wall. Fornell cursed and drew his gun. He continued watching the scene unfold through the camera's they had set up. He stared in amazement when he reallized the man that tripped his agent was DiNozzo.

Changing the target of his focus he turned and glanced at Kort. Kort was still sitting on the bus stop bench, but he was folding the newspaper up. Fornell watched as Kort stood and walked towards the the edge of the perimeter slowly. He wished he'd gotten a chance to talk to Kort before this. It was surprising what that man could uncover in a relatively short period of time.

****Kort****

Kort watched DiNozzo trip on his own feet and stumble into what had to be an FBI agent. One corner of his mouth turned upwards watching DiNozzo play the klutz to keep the other agent from blowing their cover. He shifted his eyes to see if the other man noticed what had happened. He seemed to have noticed the commotion but it also seemed like he'd chosen to blow it off. Well played DiNozzo, well played.

Kort folded his paper and crossed the street. Kort figured the rest could take out the hired thug, but he doubted they had any information on the the employer. Suspect One came close to the broad description he'd managed to obtain. The man that had been talking to Suspect One and was still in the perimeter didn't match.

Better safe than sorry in this case, thought Kort. Unknowingly Ziva had taken up a position near Suspect One, so he took advantage of the opportunity. Kort dropped his coffee cup in the the trash bin and walked over to Ziva. As soon as he got close enough he began to flirt with her.

****Ziva****

Ziva watched Kort cross the street and trash his paper. He appeared to be finishing his coffee before throwing it away as well. She watched Kort as he walked in her direction. She was completely unprepared when Kort approached her and started hitting on her. She almost punched him for interfering with the surveillance until she reallized it was part of the cover too. At least she hoped his flirting was part of the cover.

****Tim****

Tim watched Kort approach Ziva and frowned. What was he doing? He saw Kort start a conversation with Ziva but couldn't hear it from this far. Ziva was at the wrong angle for him to see her reaction to whatever Kort was saying. He decided it didn't matter as long as it didn't interfere with the bust.

****Tony****

Tony bent down to help the other agent stand. He started dusting the man off and took the opportunity to chew the other man out.

"Where'd you learn to tail a suspect?" Tony growled at the man.

"Who the fuck are you?" the man growled back.

"I'm the man that's going to kill you if you cock this up for us."

With those final words Tony turned and continued walking closer to Robinson. As pissed as he was at the other agent, he managed not to let it affect his cover. Tony passed Tim and noted how far behind him Tim was before he stopped walking. Tony bent down to tie his left shoe which he'd purposely left loosely tied when he put it on.

****Kort****

Keeping one eye on on Suspect One, Kort checked to see his reaction to the events unfolding. Suspect One looked decidedly antsy. Damn, Kort thought to himself.

About that time, all hell broke loose.


	6. Chapter 6

When the chaos began the initial cause didn't matter. Kort heard the first few gunshots ring out and immediately drew his own gun. He turned towards Suspect One and saw the gun he'd pulled. Grabbing Ziva he shoved her sideways. He was turning around to fire at Suspect One when he felt the bullet hit him. Continuing with his turn he still managed to get a shot off at his target. He felt like he was falling in slow motion.

****Ziva****

Ziva heard the shot and drew her own piece. She was turning towards the shots to take aim when she felt someone grab her. Suddenly she found herself stumbling backwards. She managed to keep a hold on her gun but banged her elbow hard on the sidewalk. Ziva cursed and tried to stand. By the time she managed it Kort was on the ground firing down the alley.

"Don't lose him!" Kort yelled at her.

Ziva debated it quickly. With everyone here they should be able to handle the targets. With Kort down there was no one to chase the other person. Ziva turned on her heels and chased the man Kort had indicated.

****Tim****

Attempting to keep an eye on the entire scene from the middle, Tim wasn't focused in the direction the first shots echoed from. He dropped the instant he heard them and pulled his weapon. Turning he shot the gunman the second he spied him. In the confusion he realized he could no longer see Robinson.

"Fuck!"

****Fornell****

Fornell saw the man pull the gun out but the man began shooting the instant Fornell could yell a warning. Pulling out his own gun he jumped out of the van. He yelled at his men to secure the area. With the fleeing pedestrians he couldn't get a clear shot off. He worked his way forward trying to get close enough to help the others.

****Tony****

Tony was focused on the man when he first drew his gun. Drawing as quick as he could Tony fired at the man but he wasn't quick enough. Shot, Robinson slid out of the chair he'd been sitting in and slid down to the sidewalk behind the table. As gunfire continued echoing, he didn't have much time to think about it. Turning Tony tried to find another hostile target.

****Tim****

Taking aim Tim almost fired at a man pointing a gun into the crowd before Fornell stepped up to the man and began conversing with him. Fuck, Tim thought. I don't know what all the people he brought look like. I could shoot one without knowing it.

****Ziva****

Ziva chased the man through the alley trying to get a good aim on her target. If Kort didn't want the man to get aways she probably should wound him instead of killing him. Taking aim at him she fired a shot at his thigh and watched him stumble.

****Kort****

Kort eased himself closer to the wall and used it to help prop himself up into a sitting position. He hadn't been shot in a long time. It hurt every bit as much as he remembered it hurting. He scanned the crowd for enemy targets. Someone grabbed his shoulder and he almost shot the person. After Tony grabbed his shoulder and forced Kort to turn towards him pain from the gunshot wound being twisted made Kort wonder why he wasn't shooting the man. Tony leaned in til they were face to face.

"Where's Ziva?" Tony yelled.

Kort shoved Tony's hands off and pointed down the alley. He kept his left arm pressed against his side and held the gun in his right hand. One of the three other CIA people who were present darted into Kort's vision. When he turned Kort waved him over. The man dropped and tried to assess Kort's wound before Kort managed to shove his hands away.

"Agents David and DiNozzo ran down that alley chasing our suspect. Go help them."

****Fornell****

The gunfire started tapering off and finally stopped. Fornell looked around. There was no way they'd stopped everyone from getting out but hopefully the ones that managed to slip through had been civilians. He didn't immediately see any casualties from his side, but it was too soon to tell.

****Tim****

When the gunfire appeared to stop McGee risked a quick look around. He recognized some of the men walking around with guns as Fornell's people. He assumed the others were too, or Fornell's men would have shot them. He stood and inspected the scene more thoroughly. McGee walked over to where Fornell was still yelling at his men.

"Tony? Ziva?"

"Not a clue kid, I got injured to worry about right now." Fornell stared at McGee for a few seconds. "I wouldn't worry about them, those two are pretty lucky."  
McGee nodded. "Yeah... Gibbs used to be too."

****Tony/Ziva****

Tony turned a sharp corner and did his best to stop quickly before he ran over his partner. She was on the ground cuffing a man who had two gunshot wounds. Somehow Tony managed not to run over Ziva. Catching his breath he leaned against the wall and ran his eyes over her checking for obvious injuries.

"You okay?" he asked her.

She waved her hand at him dismissively.

"You?"

He nodded.

"McGee?"

"He was fine when I went looking for you. By then the gunfire was already stopping."

He shoved himself off the wall and helped her stand the cuffed man up. He immediately started trying to fight back. Tony had had enough. He popped the man in the head with the butt of his gun. The man started sliding in Ziva's grasp and he helped her hold him up.

"I am not carrying him back Tony," Ziva stated flatly.

Before Tony could respond he heard footsteps coming down the alley. He raised his gun with one hand holding the man with the other. A man carrying a gun turned the corner and almost ran into them.

"Move and you're dead." Tony aimed his gun at the man. "Identify yourself."

"Brandon Hinckley, CIA. Kort sent me."

"Can you prove it?"

"I have a picture ID in my back pocket. You agents David and DiNozzo?"

"Put the gun down and grab the ID slowly."

The man did as Tony asked. Tony leaned in and inspected the ID briefly and nodded.

****Tim****

McGee helped take care of Fornell's men while trying to keep an eye out for his partners. If he lost another person he cared for so soon after losing Gibbs, he didn't know what he would do. Working his way across the site of the recent gunfight he spied Kort leaning against a wall. His eyes were closed and he wasn't moving.

Slowly McGee made his way over to Kort. He wasn't particularly close to the man, but that didn't mean he wanted him dead either. Against hope McGee walked closer and started to check for a pulse. The second he touched Kort a hand shot out and grabbed his arm. McGee jumped and Kort's eyes opened.

"Kort?"

"Only on my better days kid."

Kort dropped his hand and closed his eyes again.

"Let me see it Kort."

"It's fine. Trust me on it."

"I said, let me see it."

"I said no. Why are you pushing this?"

"Because he was there when Gibbs was shot." Tony's voice was quiet. McGee and Kort turned their heads to look at the group that emerged from the alley.

"He was there when Gibbs was shot. He took off after the shooter instead of staying with Gibbs. He blames himself for Gibbs dying."

"I never said that."

"You didn't have to." Tony refused to look directly at McGee. "I'm going to put our friend here in a car." Tony walked off half dragging the man behind him.

****Tony****

The man in cuffs allowed himself to be half drug most of the way to the car before he started resisting again. He pulled backwards against Tony's lead as they neared the car and spoke for the first time.

"Gibbs? The man Robinson shot?" The man began to laugh. "Your friend _should_ feel guilty for leaving him to die. What kind of a person leaves someone to die.  
He just ran off and left-"

Unable to take it anymore Tony snapped. He rounded on the man and began beating him senseless. They both toppled to the ground while Tony continued beating him. Hands appeared and tried to pry Tony off the man. He struck back at them as well.

"Don't you dare second guess an agent in the field. Especially not McGee. It wasn't his fault your boy shot Gibbs. Don't say another fucking word about either them."

Multiple sets of hands were begining to pry Tony off the target of his ire.

"You have no right to say a damn word about either of them. Both of them are better men than you'll ever be."

Tony tried struggling against the people restraining him but it was useless.

"You made a mistake agent. Attacking someone you're trying to arrest. And in front of witnesses." The man grinned.

"Oh I think you're mistaken about a few things." Fornell walked up to the man. "First of all, he's not arresting you. I am. Secondly, I never saw DiNozzo touch you. However, my boys did have to defend themselves when you resisted arrest." Fornell cocked his head at the man and spoke to his people. "Boys any of you see DiNozzo attack this man at all, let alone for no reason?"

There was a brief moment of silence and then the crowd began denying ever seeing DiNozzo near the man. Fornell grinned at the man as he shoved him into the car. Fornell turned and led Tony back to the FBI van. When he opened the door he ordered the few people inside to leave. For a while they stood there in silence.

****Fornell/Tony****

"He was a good man, Tony. We're all going to miss him."

Tony nodded not trusting himself to speak.

"You blame McGee for his death don't you?"

Tony whipped his head up to glare at Fornell. "It wasn't McGee's fault and you know it. There was nothing he could have done."

"I never said it was his fault... I asked if some part of you still blames him."

Tony turned away and refused to answer again.

"Tony, sometimes what the head knows, the heart has a hard time accepting."

"It. Was. Not. His. Fault."

"I know that Tony. I know you know that. Knowing it and accepting it aren't the same thing. Tony, what's wrong? Talk to me."

"It should have been me."

Fornell raised an eyebrow.

"It should have been me. It was my job to have his six. It was my job to watch out for the boss. I should have been there."

"Tony-"

"It was my job to watch his back and I wasn't there. I should have been there. I don't want to hear how accidents happen. I don't want to hear it could have happened to anyone. I don't want to hear it!"

Fornell finally understood the problem.

"You don't blame McGee for Gibbs getting shot. You blame him for not staying."

"He shouldn't have had to die alone. No one deserves that, especially not him. I would never have left him to die alone."

This time it was Fornell's turn to not respond. There was nothing he could say to fix this. He placed a hand on Tony's shoulder and let it rest there.


	7. Chapter 7

Someone had already come by and patched up Kort. Tony and Fornell were still in the FBI van and no one had heard a word from either of them for almost an hour. McGee pushed off the wall he and Ziva were leaning against.

"I'm going to check on Tony."

"I think you should wait."

"I've known him a little longer than you Kort."

"I just think you should give it a bit longer." Kort shrugged.

"It's been almost an hour Kort."

Kort pulled his cell off the clip made a call.

****Fornell****

Fornell frowned as he read the caller ID. He wondered why Kort would be calling instead of knocking. Then again, perhaps it was better to let Tony have a little more time to himself. Fornell hit the ignore button as he exited the van and walked over to the CIA/NCIS camp. He eyed the two NCIS agents and the other CIA agent present before turning to Kort.

"You rang?"

"The natives are getting restless Fornell."

"Tony... Might need a little more time. Eventually I do have to wrap up here and take the van back though."

"What is going on with him?" Ziva asked.

"I prefer not to speculate Agent David."

"I prefer not to be lied to Agent Fornell. You expect me to believe the two of you have been in that van for almost an hour and he has not said anything to you?"

"Guess not. It's just that anything he said is his business. I don't feel comfortable sharing it without asking him."

"Acceptable, but do not lie to me about my family again."

Fornell sighed, and leaned against the wall.

****Tony****

"Please, I kinda need a friend about now."

Tony listened to the person on the other end of the phone.

"Thanks, I just didn't know who else to call, and I don't think Fornell would be happy if I tried camping in his van for a few days."

****The CIA/NCIS group****

After about ten minutes of waiting a CIA and an FBI agent walked over to the group.

"Sir, there's uh... There's someone here who wants to be let into the site."

"No one allowed in here til everything is done being processed. You know that."

Kort stared at his agent, who seemed to pale.

"Uh... She's pretty insistent, sir."

"She?" Kort continued staring at his agent.

"Says her name is Abby, and if we don't let her in or send Tony out, she'll kill us and not leave evidence behind."

Ziva stifled a snicker. "I'd believe her if I were you. Abby is our forensic specialist."

The CIA agent paled a little more but didn't move.

"If I were you I'd let her in before she makes good on her word."

The CIA agent left in a rush. The FBI agent turned to Fornell.

"Sir?"

"You better let her know Agent DiNozzo is in the van."

****Tony****

Tony sat in the chair spinning slowly. He wasn't sure why he couldn't suck it up this time. He always had before. He wasn't sure what to do now. After Gibbs was shot, he pacified himself with the knowledge that, at least he could kill Gibbs' killer. After that had been shot down, quite literally, he had to focus to protect his team and the innocent bystanders. Now that the gunfight was over he had nothing to do. The door to the van opened and he didn't even look up. He did stop spinning.

"Hey Abbs."

Abby didn't speak. She just walked over and put her arms around him. Tony had held it together when he heard about Gibbs' dying. He held it together while he'd comforted Abby. He managed to hold it together while they led an investigation into the person that murdered Gibbs and even through a gunfight. He couldn't take anymore. Tony put his arms around Abby and broke down.

****The CIA/NCIS group****

"There had better be a good reason why the two of you are here."

The five people camped in front of the car with the prisoner inside turned to the speaker. Kort stood and began slowly dusting his clothes purposely ignoring the NCIS director. McGee opened his mouth to respond but Fornell beat him to it.

"I'm detaining them as witnesses until I can question them."

Vance glared at Fornell. "Witnesses?"

"That's right. The FBI was trying to apprehend someone. It degenerated into a gunfight and these two happened to be passing nearby." Fornell leaned against the wall and watched Vance for which way he was going to play this.

Vance shifted his gaze to Kort. "What's the CIA's part in this?"

"It sounded fun at the time?" Kort shrugged. "But then again, the CIA's not really involved. I just kinda showed up and thought they could use a little help." Kort flashed Vance a grin. "If you don't mind I think I'm going to collect the rest of my stuff and head out. Nice visiting with you again Fornell."

Fornell scowled at Kort as he left.

"You expect me to believe that these two were in the neighborhood near the same area their boss was killed, a random gunfight broke out, and you just happen to be keeping them for questioning?"

"I do indeed Director."

****Kort/Tony/Abby****

Kort opened the door to the FBI van and assessed the situation. Abby looked up as the door opened but DiNozzo didn't move. Damn, nothing is ever easy.  
"You two need to follow me. Now."

"What happened?" Abby paused, noticing his bandages. "Did you get shot in the gunfight?"

"Your boss showed and he's gonna be pissed if he realizes all three of you were here... Or four? We need to get you and DiNozzo out of here."

"But what if someone says he was here the whole time?"

"Let's go, let's go. I'll explain on the way."

****Back at the CIA/NCIS group****

Fornell tracked Kort out of the corner of his eye. As soon as he saw him get the two people out of his van he focused all his attention back on Vance.  
Vance crossed his arms and stared at Ziva and McGee.

"Where's DiNozzo?"

Ziva and McGee exchanged looks and turned back to Vance. Ziva shrugged and McGee leaned back against the wall.  
Vance shifted his stare to Fornell.

"I honestly don't know where he is right now Director." Fornell shrugged at Vance.

"If they weren't part of your op, then you won't have a problem handing over the tapes of it I know you have."

"Certainly Director." Fornell waved over an agent. "Would you please get the tapes of the op for Director Vance?"

The FBI agent looked back and forth between the two men. He finally turned back to face Vance.

"I'm sorry Director Vance, the tapes have already been sent back to the agency. I could have them sent back here if you would like to wait. I have to find out if they've arrived and where they are first. It might take a while."  
Vance's scowl deepened.

"That's alright Agent Caswell. I'm sure the director is a busy man. I can track them down for him later."

"Okay sir."

The group watched the agent leave.

"Any thing else Director?"

"Yes. I want to see the person you brought this many people to arrest."

"Actually there were six people we were trying to arrest. All armed as I'm sure you could already tell. It would seem that five of them didn't make it. The sixth is in the car behind you."

Vance turned and looked through the window of the car. Fornell gave McGee and David a quick smirk before the director turned back around.

"Someone you know?"

Vance ignored the question. "I want a report on this when it's done. Especially since it involved my agents."

"Well actually, I believe your agents are officially on leave. As such it would mean I wouldn't be _required _to provide you with a report. However, I give you my word as soon as I finish a report I will still send you a copy."

"See that you do Agent Fornell."

Vance put his hand out. Vance stepped in close when Fornell reached out to shake it.

"You better be able to cover this," Vance whispered.

"When I'm done with it there won't be anything to cover," Fornell whispered back.

Tim waited until Vance out of earshot. "Are you really going to question us like witnesses?"

"Nope, not question. Just going to remind you, that you guys owe me."

Tim nodded. "Kort really leave?"

"Yep. Or at least I hope he did."

"You hope?"

"Yep, he's supposed to be getting Tony and Abby out of here just incase your director chose to look around. If they're still here and Vance looks around, that could create a few problems."

****Kort/Tony/Abby****

"So wait a minute. What you're saying is the only reason Gibbs was shot was the robbery was only for the purposes of timing how fast the police respond? Not only was his death pointless already, but the robbers didn't even care about what they were robbing?"

"Sounds close. Just a few extra words here and there."

Tony processed this.

"Who set it up?"

"Don't know."

"You don't know or you're not saying Kort?"

"Don't know."

"Who was the guy you had Ziva take down?"

"Not sure."

"Not sure?"

"Nope."

"You had her chase someone, cuff them and you arrested them, and you're not sure who they are?"

"Nope."

"Nope what?"

"Didn't arrest him. Fornell did."

"Are you trying to get me to shoot you?"

"Nope but that's an interesting point. How far can I go before you do shoot me? Be nice to know something like that."

Tony opened his mouth but closed it. He seriously debated shooting Kort.

"If you don't know who he is why did you want Ziva to arrest him?" Abby interjected.

Kort glared at her. He'd been deliberately annoying DiNozzo to keep him from asking things like that. He turned his attention back to the road, hoping DiNozzo would let it drop.

"That is a good question Kort. Why _did_you want her to arrest him?"

Damn. "He did try to shoot her DiNozzo. Isn't that enough of a reason?"

"No. There's no way you could have gotten her out of the way unless you were already watching him. You had to have been keeping an eye on him before he shot at her. Why?"

Kort sighed and pulled into a parking lot.

****Fornell/Tim/Ziva****

Fornell explained as he drove. Most of the others present at the op had volunteered for it. Fornell had explained the basics to a handful of agents he new could be trusted and asked who wanted in. He was surprised when a few hours later more showed up volunteering for the op as well. Apparently Gibbs had an impact on a lot more people than even he knew about. They knew they would be required do everything possible to keep any NCIS involvement from being discovered. Most of them seemed to take this op personally.

"That doesn't mean I can cover everything. Keep that in mind."

"Wait. You mean the FBI itself is hiding our involvement?" Tim looked confused.

"Um. Not exactly."

"What do you mean 'not exactly'?"

"I'm hiding it. If this doesn't end well, it's my neck on the line."

"And your agents?"

"My agents don't know more than is necessary. They're also under orders to deny any previous knowledge of NCIS involvement. Damage control, in case things get out of hand. I don't want any others to take the fall if I fail to keep your involvement hidden. The fewer of them that have to go down the better. I didn't want anyone else to risk their jobs."

Tim and Ziva sat in stunned silence at the revelation.

Tim thought about this.

"What about the CIA?"

"No clue, I leave Kort to worry about the CIA. Frankly though, I was surprised when the three other CIA agents showed. I didn't figure Kort would bring anyone else in . I wasn't even aware he was close enought to Gibbs to want to be in on something like this. But then, there's a lot I don't know about that man."


	8. Chapter 8

Abby sat as still as she could watching the other two people apprehensively.

"You will take me to Kaplan."

Kort stared at DiNozzo and glanced briefly at the gun pressed into his chest. He carefully kept both hands wrapped around the steering wheel despite his desire to do otherwise.

"Put that away, you won't shoot me. If you kill me you're never going to find him."

"I could always ask Ziva where he's at."

"Please." Kort rolled his eyes. "You think I'm stupid enough to leave an associate of the man that killed Gibbs where someone on Gibbs' team could find him?"

"Tell me where he's at Kort."

"Why? So you can kill him? He's more useful to us alive, DiNozzo."

"Why are you even doing this Kort? You hated Gibbs."

Kort's eyes narrowed. "Don't talk about things you don't know anything about."

"You two have never gotten along Kort."

"Of course you know everything about me, don't you? Shut your mouth now, before I shut it for you DiNozzo."

"Tell me why I should think different."

"My business is just that. My business."

"Tony, even if you don't believe him, he does have a point. Kaplan is more useful to us alive. There's something big going on here and we don't have a lot to go on yet."

Tony shifted his eyes between Kort and Abby.

"Fuck."

Abby slowly leaned forward and put an arm around Tony. She rubbed his back softly while she comforted him. Slowly and carefully she reached out and put her hand on the gun he was threatening Kort with. Cautiously she pulled at it. Tony refused to loosen his grip.

"Please," she whispered.

"But he... I..."

"It's ok Tony, I'm here. I won't let anything happen. Let me have it... Please?"

This time when Abby attempted to take the gun Tony's hand fell away easily. Tony shifted til he was facing out the window. Abby turned to look at Kort, who was still glaring at Tony. She watched him until she was sure he wouldn't attack Tony. She reached out and tried to comfort Tony some more. She heard the driver's side door open and watched Kort exit the car and slam the door before he stalked off.

****Kort POV****

Kort clenched his jaw shut as he walked away. He found a spot without any other people nearby and stopped walking. He glanced back at the car and swore again. He couldn't blame DiNozzo for thinking that way. But he damn sure didn't have to let the man threaten him either. He kept telling himself Tony lost an important person in his life as well. It didn't make Kort want to kill him any less.

Kort walked back and forth trying to calm down. If any other person, at any other time, pulled what Tony had just pulled Kort wouldn't have hesitated to kill him. The one thing saving Tony was that Kort knew how Tony felt. He wanted to Kill Kaplan just as much as Tony did. Hell, he had wanted to kill Robinson too.  
Okay, so maybe he wanted to torture the bastard for a while before watching him die a slow painful death.

He was risking his job every bit as much as they were. Not that he'd ever tell them that. At least Fornell had the okay from his director to investigate this. He glanced back at the car. Sooner or later he had to go back. If they didn't get to the meeting place soon people were bound to come looking for them. He had to calm down before that happened. Kort walked into a nearby convenience store and bought three bottles of water. Did Abby drink bottled water?

Despite how he felt he was grateful to her. He thought about how strange it was that she'd been the voice of reason. He paid the cashier and left the store. Walking back to the car he did his best to keep emotions under control. He got in and handed a bottle back to Abby who took it without a word. He held out a bottle to Tony, but the man didn't make an effort to move. Kort put it in the cup holder and started the car.

****Fornell/Tim/Ziva****

"What is this place?" Tim looked around inspected the building.

Fornell shrugged. "Just a warehouse we seized a while back. Figured we could use a place big enough for everyone to meet in. Just in case. Anyway it couldn't hurt."

"I thought you said they'd be here." Ziva crossed her arms over her chest.

"They should show soon. I wouldn't be too worried."

Fornell walked a good distance away from the others and made a call.

"The natives are getting restless." He told Kort when the other man answered.

****Kort/Tony/Abby****

Kort pulled up to the warehouse close to ten minutes after Fornell's call. Abby got out and waited. When it was clear Tony wasn't going to move on his own she opened his door and started helping him to get out of the car. The second she shut the door Kort drove off leaving the two of them alone outside the warehouse. Abby waited but Tony didn't move, so she took his hand and walked to the door.

****Tim****

Tim had his gun out and aimed at the door before it finished opening. He lowered it instantly when he realized it was Abby. As Abby entered followed by Tony he was about to ask where Kort was, but he stopped himself before he got the words out. Something was wrong. Stopping just inside the door Abby turned and closed it. Taking Tony's hand again she walked over to the rest of them.

"Hey." She inspected the room. "You got any chairs in here?" Abby gave a hopeful look to Fornell.

"Yeah. Give me a second to get them." Fornell looked at Abby and Tony, and then at Tim. "Why don't you help me get them Agent David?"

****Ziva****

Ziva carefully inspected everyone. Something was wrong here, but she refrained from asking the questions she had. Fornell seemed to be the least shocked by Tony's demeanor so she chose to accompany him to get the chairs. That way she could ask him some of the questions she had. She nodded to Fornell and followed him towards the office areas.

"What is going on with Tony?"

Fornell sighed tiredly and sat on a desk.

"Tony's... having a hard time dealing with Gibbs' death."

"We are all having a hard time with that."

"DiNozzo blames himself for Gibbs dying without anyone he knew there. He feels he should have been there for him."

"He could _not_ have known that would happen. It is _not_ his fault he was not there."

"Yes, well, I'm afraid that doesn't make him feel any less guilty."

"But-"

"I think it would be best if we got DiNozzo and McGee in here and let McGee discuss this with him."

"Why just McGee? Tony is my family too."

"Agent David, McGee was there when it happened. He's the best person to help DiNozzo deal with this. I'm not saying he won't need the rest of you ever. I just think those two need some time alone to talk about this."

"Is this what you were talking about with him in your van?"

"There really wasn't that much talking. As soon as I realized what was going on with him, I realized nothing I said would matter."

Ziva thought about what he was saying. If Tony really was blaming himself for not being there, talking with McGee might help. It might not though. It depended on if he blamed McGee for being the one to be with Gibbs or not. Either way, Fornell was probably right about both of them needing to talk. Even if Tony blamed McGee he needed a chance to express it. Either way this conversation would probably need to happen. She turned to him and gave a quick nod.

Fornell rolled the chair from behind the desk to her and grabbed the other two chairs from in front of the desk. He nodded to the next door over.

"There's still chairs in there. Let's get these back so we have a place to sit as well."

****Tim****

In the silence that followed after Ziva and Fornell left in search of chairs Abby handed Tony's gun to Tim. He looked at her questioningly but she just shook her head. He wasn't used to seeing Tony like this, or Abby this quiet. He was getting increasingly worried. He watched Abby as she talked quietly to Tony. She moved her hand touching either Tony's hand or shoulder, arm or back. Throughout it all, even if she moved her hand, she never lost physical contact. Tim's worry increased.

It took what seemed like forever but eventually Fornell and Ziva returned with three chairs between them. Tim waited to see if they were going back for more, but neither made an effort to move. After a little while Fornell walked over and nodded his head for McGee to follow him. Not wanting to leave when a member of the team was this troubled, but needing to know what was going on, he followed Fornell.

"You know what's going on. Tell me."

****Ziva POV****

"Abby."

Abby turned to face Ziva.

"We need to talk Abby."

Ziva tried to lead Abby away from Tony but Abby was unwilling to break physical contact with him.

"We can talk here. He needs his family right now. I'm not leaving him alone."

****Kort****

At first Kort didn't have a specific destination. He just drove, unable to be around the others any longer. Understanding where Tony had been coming from didn't mean what Tony had said didn't hurt. Who was he to think that only his pain mattered. Gibbs was one of the very few people Trent considered a friend. Besides, Tony had the rest of the team there for him. Who was there for him to lean on?

Kort hit his steering wheel in frustration. He had every right to be just as pissed about this as Tony did. Somehow he'd managed not to pull a gun on the other man. Fuck. He needed a distraction. He had to do something to calm down. Stopping the car he looked around. He hadn't been paying attention to where he'd been driving.

****Travis****

Travis wasn't a person that was easily bored. He sat in the chair watching over Kaplan. They had taken Kaplan to one of Travis' safe houses in case anyone was good enough to find anywhere Trent might have stored him. Having sound proofed the basement allowed him to have a place in town to hold people they might need to detain without worrying about someone hearing them. He was thinking about getting something to eat when his phone rang. Travis started up the stairs to leave the basement before answering.

****Kort****

The second he opened the door Trent stormed past him. Usually Trent prefered to 'gather information' alone. Usually he wasn't trying to get it from someone he claimed he'd gotten all the information from already. Travis watched him begin to hit Kaplan. A couple of times Kaplan tried to crawl away, but chained to the wall he didn't get far. Travis sighed, removed his gun and shut the door to the basement. He watched for an opening and when he found one he moved between his friend and Kaplan.

"Move."

"Make me."

"Move. This doesn't concern you."

"You keep going like that and you'll kill him."

"And?"

"You said we needed him alive."

"This is not your concern."

"You said my job was to keep him detained and keep him alive. You trying to kill him makes it my concern."

"You are relieved from your job."

"It's not that easy. You know me better than that."

Kort glared at him.

"Tell me what changed."

"I came to my senses."

"You have to do better than that."

"Damn it, move."

"Nope."


	9. Chapter 9

Knowing Kort, Travis anticipated the move before it could fully connect. Even with that small consolation it was still hard enough to unbalance him. As he fell, Travis struck out at Kort. Before he even connected he knew he'd missed the target he was aiming for. It surprised him when Kort fell to the ground just after he did. Even surprised Travis moved to take advantage of the situation. The struggle that ensued was merciless and unrelenting but it was clear soon enough that Trent was off his game today.

He didn't think about it too hard until they ended up in a position immobilized them both. Neither willing to let go of the other. Trent was glaring at him and breathing hard through clenched teeth. It was then that Travis noticed the dark stain near the bottom of Trent's shirt. Doing the type of work he did Travis recognized it as blood. He knew nothing he had done could have cause the damage that left that much blood. He raised his head to face his friend and ask him about it.

"You piss someone else off old man?"

"All the time," Kort gritted out.

"Can I let go now, or do you want to stay here holding each other longer?"

"Just get the fuck off me."

They both released each other and Travis rolled on to his back. Both lay on the ground, breathing hard. After a while Travis stood and put his hand down to help Trent stand. Both stood, staring at each other briefly before Travis gestured towards the stairs. Kort left the basement without another word. Travis watched him walking up the stairs with one arm pressed against his side and shook his head. He made it a point to grab the first aid kit before exiting the basement himself.

****Tim POV****

Tony walked to the far wall and turned back towards McGee. He crossed his arms over his chest and waited. Tim watched him and reallized if this didn't get resolved soon they were going to lose Tony as well. He moved a chair closer to the door and sat down. Watching his teammate he tried to decide where to begin. Tony started to pace.

Tim watched as he walked back and forth. Finally, Tony uncrossed his arms and walked to the chair at the farthest edge of the room. He turned it so that his back was to Tim and sat down.

"Tony."

There was no response.

"You know, as much as you wish you had been there, I wish you had been there too."

Tony didn't respond but Tim saw him tensing.

"I know it's stupid... I just keep thinking that if it had been you instead of me he'd still be here. That you probably would have caught the guy that shot him, and he never would have died... It's not true, there was nothing anyone could have done. It's just that you and him together seemed almost unstoppable. I keep thinking, 'what if'."

Tony's head dropped forward but he still refused to speak.

"Thing is, Tony, you had a lot longer with him than I did. I realize how close you were to him , but at least you got that chance. I didn't get that long to get to know him. To learn from him. To build anything like the bond you two had... You two were so alike in so many ways."

Not trusting his voice anymore Tim stopped talking. He stared at the ground thinking about the past. Memories flooded through his mind. He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't notice Tony move. When he felt a hand on his arm he jumped. Tony had crossed the room and was crouched in front of him. Tim just shook his head slowly.

****Tony POV****

"Ah, Probie."

Tony stared at his partner. He couldn't believe how badly Tim was taking this. Okay, he could believe it. It's just that Tim hadn't shown any of it. He locked everything away out of sight, and done what needed doing. Tony, dealing with his own grief, hadn't bothered to give it a second thought. He had taken Tim at face value and hadn't bothered to look under the surface to see if his friend had been suffering. Some investigator he was.

"It would have been the same if it had been me there. It's not your fault."

"I know, I just can't stop thinking about it."

Tim turned his head away and Tony reached up and gently but firmly turned his head until they were looking eye to eye again.

"You did good McGee. If it hadn't been for you I think we would have all broken down and his killer would still be out there. You kept us on track and focused so we could get that S.O.B. Gibbs would have been proud. There's still work to be done, though. We can't do this without you, but that doesn't mean you have to hold everything in. You let one of us know when you can't take anymore I'll step up and take over. I bet Ziva would too."

Tim only nodded.

****Fornell/Ziva/Abby****

Fornell raised his head and pulled his hand away from his face.

"And Kort _didn't_ try to kill him?"

"No, but I'm worried about what he might do now. He didn't look too good when he left. You don't think he'll do anything stupid, do you?"

Fornell stared at her unsure how to answer. Stupid? This was Trent Kort they were talking about. Who knew what he'd do, it was impossible to predict that man. Fornell decided to try for neutrality.

"I think everything will be okay."

****Kort/Travis****

"You know, I used to think we'd make great partners."

"Yeah?"

"Then I realized we would kill each other if we tried working together."

Kort smiled at the thought.

"Alright you insufferable bastard, what did you do to yourself this time?"

Kort relayed what occurred this morning, and Travis just shook his head and tossed the first aid kit at Kort. While Kort rebandaged his wound they discussed possible courses of action. Travis was right that he hadn't caused the injury that resulted in the large stain of blood. However his misplaced strike had inadvertently hit the gunshot. He was sorry about it but to say so would have been out of character for either of them. He knew and Kort knew, it worked for them.

His phone rang and he pulled it out to check who was calling. When he saw who it was he rolled his eyes. He wondered how long it would take before they contacted him. He placed the ice pack on the coffee table and answered the cell.

"What?"  
_  
"Where are you?"_

"Figured I'd take a vacation, but I realized you guys would miss me too much."  
_  
"Funny Kort. You coming back any time soon?"_

"Thought about it twice."  
_  
"Hurry we need to coordinate our next plan. The funeral is tomorrow at ten."_

"You know I'm going to show?"  
_  
"Yeah, figured you might."_

"Any problems with that?"  
_  
"Not yet. You planing anything against Tony?"_

"He's the one that threatened me. I didn't lay a hand on him."  
_  
"If you'd retaliated already I wouldn't have to ask." _

"I should, you know? I owe him something for the way he acted."  
_  
"Like I said, you planning anything against him?"_

"I think we both had a really, really bad day today. He's off the hook this time. If he tries anything like that again then all bets are off."  
_  
"Understood. You coming in tonight or not?"_

"Sure, why not? Give me a little bit to wrap up here."  
_  
"Until later then."_

Kort hung up and put the ice pack back on his jaw.

****Fornell****

Fornell hung up and looked at the people in the room.

"He'll be in later. We should let the others know."

"I will get them." Ziva stood up and left to find Tim and Tony.

****Ziva****

Ziva knocked on the door nervous about what she would find. To her surprise it was Tony who opened the door. He looked around checking the hall briefly before letting her in and closing the door quietly.

"We need to talk."


	10. Chapter 10

It was almost an hour later when Kort pulled up. They were able to watch when his car pulled up thanks to Abby. She had been curious why there wasn't carmera's set up outisde already. When they said they hadn't had the time and didn't have the equipment just yet, she asked them to follow her to her car. Inside her car was enough equipment to do a decent job of setting up survielance outside almost all of the warehouse. Everyone looked at each other but knew better than to ask why she had them.

Kort walked in and stared at the scene before him. Ziva and Fornell were nose to nose arguing about something. Tim was next to them trying to seperate them and Tony was sitting in a chair nearby looking relaxed watching the whole thing. Kort walked over and sat next to Tony. He watched the arguement for a while before turning to Tony.

"Usually the fireworks don't start til I show up."

"Ziva wants to interrogate the prisoner."

"And Fornell?"

"Doesn't want to transport the man here."

"And you people can't be brought in to interrogate because you can't work this case."

"Yup."

"And he can't bring you guys in to make official statements?"

"Maybe, but it would look a little strange though. Especially since he told Vance we were giving our statements at the scene."

"Hmm."

Kort gave a long, loud whistle. He waited until the others turned and gave him their full attention. When he had their attention he stood and walked over to others.

"I think, I should give my statement tomarrow."

"What?" Fornell stared at Kort incredulously.

"My statement. I think I should have time to give it tomarrow." Turning he chucked the car keys in Tony's direction. "Think you can give me a ride DiNozzo?"

****Tony****

Tony caught the keys with one hand and stared at Kort. He inspected Kort for a sign of what he was up to but didn't immediately coming up with any ideas. The small smirk on Kort's face told him Kort was up to something. Better to play it safe he thought.

"Yeah. Not a problem."

****Kort****

Kort nodded and turned to Fornell.

"That said, I think you should turn the man over to NCIS."

"Why would I turn him over to NCIS?"

"This man did hire the man that killed Gibbs. It's only right that they get to do an interrogation."

"Even if that were the case there's no reason they can't conduct the interview where he's at. Transferring him creates unnecessary risks."

"The bust belongs to them. David is the one that brought him down. She does deserve to do an interrogation and it's not all that possible while he's still in FBI custody. Especially since they're not supposed to be involved in this."

"How do you expect her to be able to interrogate the man if he's at the NCIS building any more than where he's at now?"

"They're pretty resourceful. I think one of them might find away if they had an oppertunity. We should get some sleep, big day tomorrow. Give me a lift DiNozzo?"

Kort was quiet as he watched Tony trying to figure out what was going on. He was relieved when Tony stood and walked to the door without asking anything. Once they could get away from here he could tell DiNozzo the plan.

****The funeral****

The funeral itself went fast. When they got to the part where people had a chance to come forward and speak everyone looked at Ziva, Tim, and Tony. Ziva stalked forward and began to speak. She was actually pretty eloquent. Right up to the point she promised a slow painful death to anyone that was involved in Gibbs' death. Tony almost couldn't keep the smile off his face. He looked to see if Tim wanted to go next but Tim gestured for Tony to go ahead. Sighing he walked up to say a few words. Tim went last and when he was done they all sat quietly waiting.

Director Vance spoke next; it was brief but seemed heartfelt. Fornell speaking wasn't surprising, but some of what he said was. Tony hadn't realized Fornell and Gibbs had been that close. After Fornell quite a few people who turned out to be FBI agents quietly made their way forward one by one. Tony was a bit shocked by the amount of people who's lives Gibbs had touched. Well, in a positive manner anyways.

When it was finally over everyone began to shuffle out, many offering the team condolences. Fornell gave Tony an indecipherable look before leaving. Finally the only person left besides the team was Kort. Kort stayed seated staring at the coffin for a few minutes before getting up and walking over.

"Ready?"

Tony inspected Kort's face but couldn't read anything in it.

"Yea, let's do this. See you guys later." Tony gave the others a half smile before leaving with Kort.

"It's not going to work Kort."

"What's the worst that could happen?"

"We could lose the cooperation of the FBI? The guy could escape? We could lose our jobs? Take your pick."

"He's not going to get a chance to escape, Fornell's gotta cooperate with us if we have his best lead and... Well I can't help about you guys losing your jobs. That might actually happen. Maybe not, though. I'm not sure the FBI's going to be too eager to admit that one of their prisoners was stolen out of their headquarters, right out from under their noses. Besides, if anything goes wrong you can blame it on me." Kort grinned at Tony.

Tony sighed and continued driving. If anything did go wrong they'd be screwed no matter what Kort said. Kort's plan was pretty good, though, especially if it worked. Tony wanted to question the prisoner every bit as much as Ziva had, but he figured he'd have to find a way to go around Fornell. There was no way Fornell was going to give up the man or let any of them into question him.

Of all the things Tony thought could go wrong, the one thing he hadn't figured would go wrong was the suspect being dead. As they entered Tony recognized an NCIS agent that was part of the team investigating Gibbs' case. He was talking to FBI agent further up the hall. Tony made a sharp right around a corner and leaned against the wall trying to look casual. Kort leaned against the same wall close to the corner's edge. He was making casual conversation and keeping an eye on the others down the hall.

An FBI agent curious about their presence walked over and questioned them. Tony gave his name but left Kort to the explanations. When the agent revealed that the suspect was dead Tony didn't pretend not to be pissed. Before he could truly get started his phone rang. Tony hit ignore and continued. A few seconds later his phone rang again. Again, he hit ignore without checking it.

****Kort****

Kort shook his head slowly watching everything unfold. He was pissed the suspect was dead too, but Tony's actions weren't helping. He watched Tony silence his phone for the second time. He was sorting through what they could do next when his own phone rang. Checking the caller ID he frowned. He moved a bit farther away before answering.

"Yes?"

"Is Tony still with you?"

"You could say that."

"Grab him and get back here. Now."

Fornell hung up without another word. Kort stared at his phone for a few seconds before putting it away. Kort brushed off his irritation at Fornell's curt manner and went to retrieve Tony.


	11. Chapter 11

Kort had made a quick detour to grab Travis and Kaplan. By the time they arrived at the warehouse neither Kort nor Tony were in a good mood. Kort stormed in, bent on giving Fornell a piece of his mind, but stopped short when he saw the man Suspect One had talked to before the shoot out had begun. He also noted there were three other people present he hadn't expected.

"For something that's supposed to be kept quiet, we seem to keep acquiring more and more people." McGee stated.

"He's been involved for a while, McGee. He's the guy I had watching Kaplan." Kort nodded in Travis' direction.

"Let's get these two temporarily out-of-the-way and discuss a few things." Fornell suggested.

"Good, that should give the Doc plenty of time to get here. That way we can make sure they don't expire before we're done." Ziva grinned evilly at the two prisoners.

McGee and Tony each grabbed one of the prisoners and took off towards separate offices. Ziva turned and spoke to Kort.

"Palmer has already been called. He should be here in twenty minutes."

****The warehouse group****

"So what do we know about your suspect?" Travis asked the group in general.

Fornell dropped a file on the table in front of where everyone was standing. Travis skimmed through it. Name, Wayne Jeong. Married four years to Kathrine Jeong (Kehoe), no kids. Working as an FBI agent for 6 years. Father was a police officer in L.A. Mother was a teacher. Grandparents immigrated from South Korea in 1954. No previous legal problems.

Travis dropped the file and looked around. "Does anyone know this man personally or worked with him?"

"I have."

Travis took a good look at the woman who stepped forward. She was about five foot nine, blonde, and looked like she would do well in almost any undercover op. She had a very versatile air about her.

"This is Special Agent Amanda Phelps." Fornell said, introducing the woman formerly.

"This is out of character from my dealings with him. He's always been a dedicated agent and husband. Yesterday I'd have even said he wouldn't have done anything to endanger his job or his wife."

"Could somebody be blackmailing him to do this? Threatened his wife? Anything like that," McGee asked.

Amanda actually considered the question. "I doubt it. Apparently she took some defense classes before they met because she used to date an abusive ass.  
When she and Wayne got married she continued taking classes. She's pretty good at taking care of herself."

"What would you say about his actions and demeanor since he's been he's been here?"

"He's acting a little odd. Almost like he wants to say something but something is keeping him from actually doing so."

Travis opened his mouth to ask something else but the door opened, the assistant M.E. and another person walked in. Casually he placed his hand on his gun.

"Ducky, what are you doing here," Ziva asked in surprise as the M.E. approached the group.

"Apparently Mr. Palmer has been less than forthcoming with updates. I felt it was time I joined the cause on a more personal level. Introductions, if you would, Ms. David."

Travis paid attention as Ziva introduced most everyone present. The only two people she couldn't introduce were apparently FBI agents. She turned and looked at Fornell for him to continue.

"Agents Adam Sloan and Chad Kershaw," Fornell stated.

****Tim****

McGee looked around briefly before issuing orders. "Tony bring Ducky up to speed. Fornell go and interrogate Jeong. Play nice I want this taped. Ziva and Travis you both go record this. I want you both watching for cue's in case Fornell misses something."

Fornell raised an eyebrow at McGee.

"I'm not saying you will but it can't hurt to have more people watching." As Ziva started to protest, McGee cut her off. I want at least one taped interrogation for evidence. None of us can be on it. Agent Phelps, I want you and Kort to go pick up his wife. If she's part of this I want her under surveillance. If she's not part of any of this then I want her somewhere safe."

"Wait a minute, why him and not us," Agent Sloan interjected.

"Because I said so." Tim growled.

"If she's going anywhere it should be with one of us. Not some CIA agent with his own agenda."

"Kort's going and that's final."

"Why him?"

"Because," Kort interrupted them and pause briefly, "he know's I won't hesitate if we have to kill her."

Agent Sloan opened his mouth but he couldn't seem to get the words out. Tim ran a hand over his face and glared at Kort. He was right, but he didn't have to put it like that.

****Fornell and Jeong****

Fornell checked the audio with Ziva before heading into the room with Jeong inside. When he entered he paced back and forth behind Jeong for a few minutes. After some time, Jeong began to fidget. Jeong had just opened his mouth to say something when Fornell spoke.

"What was it you hoped to accomplish by killing him?"

"Who says I killed anyone?"

"You were pretty smart to deactivate the cameras and the mic. in the interrogation room. However due to the sensitivity we had a third camera placed in the room." Fornell replied. "The camera was set to transmit and record in my office. How do you think we knew to pick you up in the parking lot?"

"Then why aren't we in an FBI interrogation room?"

"Because there are fewer people with access to this building which leads to fewer witnesses." Fornell grinned at the man. "Also the chances of your  
"accidental" death happening are much less likely here."

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Jeong straightened and crossed his arms over his chest.

"What I don't get, is why. You had nothing to gain and everything to lose."

"I can't tell you, you wouldn't understand." Jeong said miserably.

Fornell slammed his hands down on the table next to Jeong.

"Bullshit," he yelled. "You will tell me who ordered my suspect killed. If you don't we're going to stop this interview now and let those two pull that information out of you." He pointed at Ziva and Travis and watched Jeong's reaction.

"There's more here going on than you know. Fuck you I'm not saying a damn thing."

****Abby's Lab****

"It looks like Jeong received a short call just before he killed the suspect. It only lasted about two minutes and he killed the suspect about ten minutes after he received it." Abby showed the report to the FBI agents. "The prepaid phone's still active and seems to be in Maryland." She jotted down the address and handed to to the FBI agents.

As soon as they left she texted the the coordinates with a short message to Tim as well. She also included the fact that the coordinates were about a block from Jeong's residence.

****Kort/Amanda (Jeong's house)****

Kort and Amanda had just arrived at the Jeong residence when his phone rang. He checked the call ID and realized it was McGee. He answered it and listened carefully to the information that McGee had. Fuck, nothing can ever be simple. He got out of the car and checked the surroundings discretely. Noting a running car not far away with no one inside he nodded for Amanda to follow him.

Casual inspection of the car didn't reveal anything immediately. He was running through all possible scenarios in his head when he heard a woman scream. Both he and Amanda turned towards the sound at the same time. When the realization hit that it came from the Jeong house they both took off running at the same time.


	12. Chapter 12

Kort motioned for Amanda to take the front while he went around to the back of the house. When he got close he noticed the door was already open and there was a leg sticking out of the doorway. With weapon drawn he approached the door cautiously and peered into the house. The first thing he saw was a gun pointed directly at his head.

"Drop the gun," said the woman holding the gun on him.

"Federal agents ma'am. I'm going to slowly reach for my identification."

Kort reached for his ID slowly keeping his eyes on the woman. He noted Amanda at the entrance to the kitchen. He held up the ID and waited while the woman inspected it. She slowly lowered the gun but didn't put it down.

"What the fuck is the CIA doing at my house?"

"Running a little late apparently," he replied dryly while staring down at the unconscious man on the kitchen floor. "Agent Phelps and I are here for your protection." He made a small motion behind the woman.

"Kathrine, it's okay, you can put down the gun." Amanda put her own gun away and stared meaningfully at Kort.

Katherine turned slightly, looked at Amanda and back towards Kort. Slowly she put the gun down on the counter and backed away from the man on the floor. The man on the floor started to stir and Kort knelt and put his gun in the man's face.

"Cuff him," he told Amanda.

Amanda moved forward and cuffed the man.

"What happened here," Amanda asked.

"I was in here and saw him sneaking past the window with the gun." She gestured to the gun on the counter. "I grabbed the frying pan and bashed him with the frying pan when he came through the door. The gun went off after I hit him and then he dropped it. After I grabbed his gun off the floor I noticed this guy going past my window." She nodded in Kort's direction.

She turned back towards Amanda and asked, "So can someone tell me why the CIA and the FBI is at my house? What do I need protecting from? Where's my husband? Is he okay? Who's this guy?" She shot a look at the man now sitting on her kitchen floor.

"It's a little complicated" Amanda started.

"We're here to take you to your husband. You better come with us," Kort said cutting her off. "Take her car to the bus station then get a cab and you two head back. Check the car first to make sure there aren't any nasty surprises. Me and our new friend here are going to go for a ride."

As soon as they left Kort pulled out his phone and placed a call. He made arrangements for a clean-up crew to come by and for the man's car to be taken elsewhere to get checked over. He then grabbed the gun off the counter and the suspect and put him in the back of the car he and Amanda had come here in. Finally he drove back to the warehouse.

****Back at the warehouse****

Watching the monitors, McGee saw Kort arrive and pull a man out of the back of the car. When they entered McGee looked questioningly between Kort and the man.

"Where's Jeong's wife and who's this," he asked Kort.

"His wife should be here soon, she's with Amanda. This is the man she brained with the frying pan. Apparently he was going to kill her."

McGee rubbed his temples. "Put in him in an office, I'll get Fornell." As Kort left McGee went to gather Fornell, Travis, and Ziva. The four of them were waiting in the operations area for Kort when he returned. Everyone took a seat and listened as Kort explained exactly what had transpired.

"Amanda and his wife will be here soon. We need to figure out what we're going to tell her when they get here."

"Stall the wife for a few minutes, I have an idea." Fornell stated before heading back to the office with Jeong in it.

****Fornell/Jeong****

After entering the office he told Jeong, "I've got good news and bad news. The good news is your wife is safe and on her way here. The bad news is someone tried to break into her house and kill her. On top of this she's going to have to find out that her husband is fixing to go away for a long time for murder."  
Jeong collapsed on the table with his face in his hands. "Thank God she's okay," he whispered.

"You want to tell me why you killed him now?"

Leaning back in his chair, Jeong looked up at Fornell. "Growing up I was told one day I would get a call and given a code phrase. The caller would have a mission I would have to complete. I never thought it would actually happen. This morning, however, I got that call. Not only did they give me a mission, they told me that if I didn't finish this in less than thirty minutes they would know and my wife would die. Is that a good enough reason?" He glared at Fornell.

"Who exactly are they?" Fornell demanded.

"The North Korean Foreign Intelligence Agency."

****Main room in the warehouse****

Entering the warehouse Kathrine looked around at the people gathered. "Enough of the silent treatment. I want to know what's going on and I want to see my husband."

Tony stepped forward and introduced himself. He explained most of the situation from the beginning. He ended with "We thought that perhaps your husband was reluctant to tell us what he knew because he was worried about your safety."

"Why would you think he'd know anything about a suspect being murdered in an interrogation room?"

Tony was saved from answering by Fornell's appearance.

"Because he did kill the man. He was told if he didn't you would be killed," Fornell replied briskly.

She turned to Kort and demanded, "Give me a gun and tell me where you put that SOB."

Kort quirked an eyebrow and said, "I think I'm starting to like this woman."

"Gun, now."

"I don't think killing your husband is a good idea." Tony said.

"I'm not talking about my husband. I want the ass that put him in that position." Looking towards Fornell she told him, "Don't worry, he'll talk before I kill him."

"Yep, definitely like her." Kort grinned.

Travis grinned back at Kort. "Definitely potential there."

"Knock it off you two." McGee told Kort and Travis. "Ma'am if Agent Fornell doesn't object I think you can go see your husband now. Please try to convince him cooperation is in his best interest."

Fornell nodded his approval and told Amanda to accompany Kathrine. When they were out of earshot he updated the others about what they were dealing with.


	13. Chapter 13

Driving down the road, Agent Steven Laster cursed as he almost lost Lee Yung again. His teammate Lillie Mayar mutter something about his driving and not riding with him ever again. Their boss Mark Burrows and their other teammate Daniel Corbin, had stayed at the NCIS building trying to turn up more information. They'd gone to the FBI building to try to question the suspect that had been caught at the shoot out yesterday. When they'd shown up they received the news that the man had just been killed.

Durring the confusion Steven had heard Agent Yung speaking in Korean on a cell nearby, he got a nagging feeling that something wasn't right. When Yung looked up and saw Steven watching him, the story he gave about his wife needing him to pick up something from the store didn't sit well. Steven being a linguist, realized Lee was lying about something. He asked his boss, Agent Burrows, if he should follow-up on it. Agent Burrows just told him to make sure he took back-up.

****Abby's Lab****

Just before the two FBI agents were about to leave Abby was surprised when a CIA agent dropped off a car. Claiming it was part of an FBI investigation and that he was told the agents here would know what case it was for. The CIA agent left his name and said that if there were any questions he was told they should call Fornell and ask him.

Abby looked at Sloan and Kershaw questioningly. Kershaw called Fornell, who provided more information. Quickly Kershaw updated Abby about the recent developments. She enlisted them as assistants and told them to start photographing while she began going over the car.

"Aha!" Abby exclaimed as she opened the trunk. "Check this out."

The two agents walked to the trunk and peered in. Inside were several changes of utility worker uniforms and tool belts. Bagging them for further inspection later. Some of the uniforms near the bottom were in clear plastic bags with tape around the top of the bag. Moving one of the bags of clothing over to the table she carefully cut it open.

Gagging and wrinkling her nose up she backed away quickly from the table. The FBI agents still working on photographing the rest of the car paused and turned to look and the smell finally hit them as well. Sloan quickly backed away as Kershaw walked over and peeled the bag back farther.

"We should probably get respirators on. This reminds me of my uncle's work clothes. He used to work sewers in Chicago.

Quickly donning a respirator Abby went back to taking samples for testing. As soon as she was done they rapidly rebagged the uniforms.

****Back at the warehouse****

"I should go question our new arrival," stated Fornell,

"No." McGee stated simply.

"What do you mean no?"

"Something's telling me we don't have much time. We should let Ziva, Kort and Travis try first. Whatever is going on is big. My gut is telling me something bad's going to happen and soon. We need to find out what's going on as fast as possible."

"He's right," Tony injected. "What ever it is, they're willing to kill their own people to accomplish it. We need to try to stay one step ahead of them. Right now we're still trying to play catch up."

Before McGee could anser his cell rang. Checking the call ID he quickly answered.

"Hold on a second, I'm going to put you on speaker phone. What's up Abs?"

"The guy you've got had uniforms that sewer workers would wear in his trunk. You'll never believe what my babies told me was on the uniforms."

"What was on them?"

"You're not even going to try to guess?"

"Abby."

"Fine." she sounded a little dejected. "There were copious amounts of highly flammable chemicals that aren't normally allowed in the closed sewer lines."

Abby went on to explain why they didn't normally allow the use of such products. If they were to mix with household cleaners all they would need is a catalyst which wouldn't even have to be big and the whole pipe could become a bomb.

"If they've been at this long enough the whole city could be rigged to blow," she finished and waited for his response.

"How much bad could the damage be for a city block if they were to set this off?" Fornell asked.

"In a suburban area? Because the lines are a little smaller most of it would be confined under ground. However, every house would probably be set on fire by it. In a city area, especially a place with a lot of apartments, their pipes are a lot larger. The damage would be correspondingly higher. Possibly even enough to structurally damage a sky scraper. Roads could collapse, subways could turn into blast furnaces, I mean we're talking Armageddon here."

Fornell turned to the other three and said, "Go."

Travis, Kort and Ziva took off to begin the 'interrogation'.

Fornell looked at McGee and said, "I have to call the bureau and inform them of some of the recent developments. You want me to call Vance, since it might not be a good idea if you did it?"

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea. Thanks."

****Somewhere in the city with two NCIS agents actually investigating the case****

Steven pulled out his phone and dialed his boss.

"Boss, Agent Yung left work early and drove about a mile north, before parking next to a van. He's currently still in his car talking with the people in the van.  
Two Asians dressed as sewer workers. Can't be sure if there's anyone else in the van or not. The van's got more antennas than most of our surveillance vans."

"Stick with the van for now, don't lose them. I'm going to make a few calls and see if I can turn up any more information."

"Got it. Later boss."

"Later."

****Back at the warehouse****

Tony sat slumped in one of the chairs, watching Jeong and his wife talking. He was trying to reason out whether or not he would get to shoot this guy. He knew he was probably still not thinking straight, but he didn't care much right now. His phone rang suddenly. Aside from Abby and Fornell's two men everyone else was here. Fornell's agents would probably call him and Abby would probably call Tim. He narrowed his eyebrows wondering who it could be.

"Hello?"

"Agent DiNozzo?"

"Sometimes." Tony replied irritably

"Mark Burrows. Completely unofficially, would you have any idea why a man from the FBI would be talking to two sewer workers in a van that appears to have more antennas than our surveillance vans?"

Tony abruptly sat up straight and tightened his grip on the phone.

"Don't lose that van for any reason! Call Vance, and tell him to get that van under surveillance, too. We don't know everything, yet, but it involves the North Korean Foreign Intelligence Agency. We believe they may be planning on blowing up the sewer system. They've already got some chemicals in the system, but we're not sure of any more than that yet. And tell the director that you got the information from Fornell when you called him for something. Also, give me the agents name."

"The name is Lee Yung. I'll call Fornell first then Vance."

"I'll give him what you told me so you don't have to repeat it."

Tony hung up on Mark and went to talk to Fornell. He rounded the corner and spotted Fornell.

"I know who your mole is," he told Fornell.

As soon as Tony got the words out Fornell's phone rang.

"You might wanna answer that. It's probably Burrows calling with the information I'm fixing to give you."

Fornell answered the phone and said, "Go Burrows."

"I gave Tony all the information I had. Talk to him. I just had to call you for the call log."

Mark hung up on Fornell. Fornell stared at his phone and shook his head. Putting it away he turned to Tony. "Spill it."

"Your mole's name is Lee Yung. Judging by the number of antennas Burrow's team spotted on the 'sewer worker's' van, your agent probably helped them to be able to monitor everything from here to Connecticut."

"They potentially found the other conspirators?"

"Seems so."

"I have to call the director back." He pulled his phone out and began dialling. Turning to Tony, he asked, "Is he calling Vance?"

"Supposed to be. Told him to do that first thing after calling you."

****A short time later in the warehouse****

Coming back from giving Kaplan something to eat, McGee saw Tony and Fornell sitting the main area. Ziva, Kort and Travis were just exiting the temporary interrogation room looking smug.

"We've got their plan and schedual." Ziva told the group.

"We've got two of them in a van under surveillance," stated Fornell.

"What are we waiting for?" Tony demanded.

"We aren't going to move until we know where they all are. We don't know how many more there are." McGee told Tony.

"There are three more." Kort replied.

"Do we have names?" McGee asked the three.

"Of course. You sent us in to get information, didn't you?" Travis grinned at him.

"The plan was to put enough of these chemicals throughout of the sewers to burn down almost a quarter of the city. That way no one would realize that their targets were the main intelligence buildings for the country." Ziva informed them.

"If our attention hadn't been drawn to them as quickly as it was, we might have been blinded intel wise for at least a week. Judging by the size of the area they planned to blow some of the back-ups would have been gone too." Kort told them.

"Your names are Jin Liang, Tommy Kwan and Lee Yung. The man that attacked Kathrine is named Ryung Kim." Travis replied.

"I should call the director again and tell him we're pretty sure we have all the people involved accounted for." Fornell stood and left to make his call.

"You might want to call your director, Kort. I'm sure he has to be wondering what you're up to lately." Tim said.

Kort shrugged and walked off.

****Steven and Lillie (NCIS agents investigating the case)****

Steven tensed as the two men in the van put a hose into the sewer and began pumping something into it. He let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding when there wasn't an explosion. Turning towards Lillie he realized she was as nervous as he was.

"Hopefully we're upstream of the explosion zone," he said trying to lighten the mood with humor.

"No. Not only are we downstream, you parked us right over a natural gas line," she told him, pointing at a warning sign.

He winced as he turned to look at it. His phone started to ring and he jumped a little.

"Laster," he answered.

"Everyone's rolling on this one. Don't lose that van at any cost. The FBI will have teams ready to deploy any minute. If you even think they're about to set this off, I'm authorizing you two to take them out without warning. Sit tight guys, the calvary is on the way." Burrows hung up without another word.

Turning to Lillie he said, "The boss says sit tight the FBI's going to come and save the day."

"Why does that make me more nervous than when I saw the natural gas sign?"


	14. Chapter 14

Vance walked out of MTAC and yelled for Burrows to join him.

"Yes, director?"

"Get in touch with Fornell, he's going to be heading this op. You and your team are going to participate as well. Make sure I stay informed on everything."

"Yes director."

Walking back, Burrows yelled, "Corbin, get your gear."

Vance watched them walk out, pulled out his phone and dialled Ducky's number. He told Ducky that the FBI's M.E. had come down with a stomach bug and is unable to do the autopsy on the suspect that died in the FBI's custody. "We were asked to help out. The body will be here in thirty minutes."

****Back at the warehouse / Ziva****

Ziva sat in the main area of the warehouse checking and rechecking her firearms. She had a sudden flashback to a time at the firing range when Gibbs had complimented her on her shooting. Tears started filling her eyes and she tried to push the emotions back. She heard a door open and looked up as Travis walked in.

Travis paused and stared at her. "You know," he said quietly, "you can't bring him back, but you _can_ put the people responsible into the ground."  
Ziva just nodded back at him.

The door opened again, and Kort walked in.

"Just to let you guys know, the FBI are going to meet here for planning out the op soon. They should start arriving in about fifteen minutes. I think I'm going to grab a bite to eat or something. You hungry Travis?"

Travis gave a small smile at Ziva and left with Kort.

Ziva watched Kort leave and got up to make sure camera's were in place so that they could watch and listen into the meeting without being in the same room.

****Back office in the warehouse / Tony and Tim****

"You know they're not going to like us being at this op." Tony turned and looked at Tim.

"Tough shit," Tim muttered under his breath. McGee looked at Tony. "I'd rather we do this where they don't know that we were there, but if they find out then they do." He shrugged. They went over the plan again. Until they got more information they couldn't cement anything, but they had the basics planned out.

Ziva left the building just before the first group of FBI agents arrived.

They watched as the rest of the FBI and two of the other NCIS team finished arriving and the FBI set up more equipment. Paying careful attention to where the others would be located they put the final touches on their plan. McGee brought up a map of the area and found a location inside the FBI perimeter, but not directly visible to anyone else. He texted Ziva the location so she could get into place before the others showed.

Making note of where everyone else was planning on being, McGee checked the computer for maps of the area and sewer tunnels. The FBI plan still left three possible openings for someone to get through. He point to one of the locations.

"Tony, you cover here. It's between these two and you should be able to get to either if you need to. I'll cover here and I can get to either of these two. Ziva should be able to cover all three from her position."

****Main are of the warehouse / Fornell / Planning****

Fornell gave them ten minutes before they moved out. While everyone reviewed their jobs, Fornell pulled Phelps to the side.

"The director wants Jeong and his wife at the witness protection offices. I want you to take them and stay with them as long as they will let you. Also tell whoever is handling their case that you and I are to be the only people to act as their contacts. Call Sloan and Kershaw. Tell them to pick up Ryung Kim and take him back to the FBI detention cells and sit on him. Do not leave him alone, two agents on him at all times."

"Got it." Phelps replied, heading for the offices.

Fornell told the rest present, "You all have your positions and assignments. When we get there wait until I give the go word before anyone moves. Move out."  
As everyone headed for their vehicles Fornell's phone rang. He checked the caller ID and saw it was the director.

"Fornell here, sir."

"Two of the agents we sent to pick up Yung were shot and he managed to elude the other two. Be advised Yung is still on the loose."

He swore under his breath. "How are the two that were shot?"

"Both in critical condition on their way to the hospital as we speak."

"Thank you for letting me know. Anything else?"

"Make sure this doesn't end with half the city in flames. I'll trust your judgement on whatever you feel needs to be done to prevent this."

The director hung up. Fornell dialled McGee to give him the news on Yung.

****At the op / Tony****

Tony opened his phone and read McGee's text. He cursed when he read that Yung had shot two Agents and was MIA. Tony looked around thought about it. If he was Yung, and intent on finishing this mission, what would he do? He thought back on the sewer line plans they'd examined. The most likely place Yung would try to get to enter the sewers would be the opening to the west.

Tim could still cover the other opening if Yung decided to use it. Tony left his position and went to wait in the western opening. He looked around and nodded to himself. He backed into an area where he wouldn't be easily visible and waited.

****At the op / Fornell****

Watching the agents move into position, Fornell took a quick look around to see if he could spot Tony, Tim or Ziva. Not having spotted any of them he hoped they stayed out of sight. He had no illusions that they wouldn't be here. Fornell told the agents in charge of the jamming equipment to initiate the process.

"Two minutes to go people." Fornell informed the agents.

****The take down****

Trucks and agents rushed onto the scene. Agents ran towards the suspects with guns drawn. Agents yelled, "FBI, don't move." at the suspects. Agents closest to the front of the van were stopped short when they saw the van's windshield suddenly splattered with blood. The suspect outside the van turned towards the van. Quickly he took one step backwards and threw up his hands.

Agents moved in to subdue the suspect outside of the van, while others moved towards the van. The suspect outside of the van was quickly cuffed and disarmed. The agents who went to inspect the van discovered the second suspect slumped backwards in the seat. His hand on a small canister and a gunshot wound to the head.

****The op / Ziva POV****

Ziva quickly scanned the access points that Tony and Tim were covering. She became concerned briefly when she didn't spot Tony where he was supposed to be. Ziva asked McGee if he had a visual on Tony. She became worried when he told her he couldn't spot Tony either. Ziva listened for a response as she heard McGee order Tony, over their mics, to check in.

Checking through the scope of the rifle she tried again to spot their missing teammate. She saw someone removing the cover of the western access point. She looked closer and recognized Agent Lee from the pictures Fornell had shown them. She took the shot as fast as she could, and saw the man fall into the hole. She cursed and yelled at McGee over the mic.

"I just shot Lee as he was entering the western access."

She heard McGee curse and watched him sprinting towards the manhole in question.

****The op / Tony POV****

Tony hearing the manhole cover being opened realized he couldn't respond to his teammates when McGee ordered him to check in. He remained quiet as the cover was removed. When he saw a leg coming through the hole he took aim. Suddenly Agent Lee dropped to the floor. Keeping his gun aimed at the man he saw Lee draw a gun. Tony immediately stepped out from behind the pipe and yelled at the man.

"NCIS, drop it now!"

Like a striking snake Lee spun and fired. Tony returned fire automatically. Lee fell back against the concrete. Walking over, Tony stared at the dead man briefly before unloading the rest of his clip into Lee.

****The op / Tim****

McGee heard gunshots as he neared the manhole. His mind briefly flashed back to Gibbs being shot. Without thinking he dropped to the ground, and gun first he leaned into the opening and yelled.

"Tony!"

Tim watched as Tony turned his head to look at him. Blood trailed down Tony's left arm and Lee was laying on the ground with multiple shots to the chest.

"I got the son of a bitch." Tony replied as he backed up to the wall and slid down it.

"Ziva get a medic to the west access! Now!" McGee yelled over the mic.

****Ziva****

Using the FBI mic Travis had lifted for her she yelled "Medic to the 200 block of W. 34th street. Approximately two blocks south of the op." Ziva quickly exited the building and carefully made her way out of the FBI perimeter. About a block from the site she walked up to a car parked at a corner and got into the passenger seat. Travis pulled away from the curve and drove off.

****At the hospital****

Tim checked his watch again. Two hours had passed since Tony had gone into surgery and still no word. Tim watched as Ziva continued to pace back and forth. Palmer walked over to them with another round of coffee and sat down next to Abby. When his phone went off Tim jumped slightly before whipping it out and answering it.

"I've got this covered with Vance," Fornell said. You make sure you keep me updated on Tony's condition."

"Got it. I'll tell the others," McGee said.

Tim turned to the others and told them what Fornell had said. Ziva nodded and resumed her pacing.

****later****

After just over four hours of emergency surgery, Ducky finally walked into the waiting room. He told the group that Tony is out of surgery and stable. With physical therapy he should regain full use of his left arm.

Abby hugged McGee and kept repeating "Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Ziva finally sat down and said a silent prayer of thanks.

Palmer finally looked relieved and grinned at the news.

Tim just sat there holding Abby, nodded to Ducky and laid his head on top of Abby's.

****The End****

****A/N It's not the story I initially intended to write, more like a conglomeration of answers to questions sent to me throughout the story. I'm still pretty happy with it.****

****A/N 2 It is intended to be the start of a series focusing on the individual members. If you think the ending is ambiguous please bear in mind I intend to write at least 3 more stories for this series.****

****Please leave feedback (especially constructive) :D****

**Thank you!**


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